Kingdom Hearts Revisited
by Henceforth I Shall Be Nameless
Summary: Post-KHII: Friends are reunited. Enemies are returning. Strangers wielding Keyblades emerge. Dreams are haunted by darkness. Pasts will be revealed. Romances will blossom. Adventures will continue. Lives will change. The worlds are at stake once more...
1. Prologue: Light

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts; all character credit (except for the OCs) goes to Disney and Square-Enix.

Note to the Reader: This is my first fanfiction, so please try not to be too harsh. Constructive criticism is always welcome.

Original Summary: This story takes place right after Sora, Riku and Kairi are finally reunited on Destiny Islands at the end of Kingdom Hearts II. A stranger washes up on the Islands with no memories of their past life, and a letter is received from the King warning of a new threat to the worlds. Once more, Sora must travel the worlds and protect their residents from those who would do them harm.

{Pairings will be revealed as the story progresses}

New Summary: Post-KHII: Friends are reunited. Enemies are returning. Strangers wielding Keyblades emerge. Dreams are haunted by darkness. Pasts will be revealed. Romances will blossom. Adventures will continue. Lives will change. The worlds are at stake once more...

~-The pieces are coming together-~

-~But in the end~-

~-May shatter them all-~

**Prologue**

POV: Sora

I looked up from Kairi's letter to see a light appear above the dark waters that stretched out before us. Hope was rekindled in my heart.

"Light," Riku murmured in amazement.

"The door to light," I whispered in confirmation. I stood up and offered my hand out to Riku, who was sitting on the sand. "We'll go together," I told him.

"Yeah," he replied, taking my hand and standing up. Fearlessly, we walked into the light.

The next thing I knew, I was disoriented, I had the strangest sensation that I was flying. My eyes were shut tight, but before I could panic, I impacted the freezing cold waters. I broke the surface, and saw Riku resurfacing from the calm water.

"Sora! Riku!" a voice called out. At the sound of our names we turned, to see Kairi waving at us from the shores of Destiny Islands. Riku and I exchanged smiles, and swam as quickly as we could to the shallows where Kairi was waiting for us. To my surprise, Donald, Goofy and the King ran past Kairi and into the water. Donald and Goofy leapt onto me, and knocked me backwards into the ocean. I sat up, and Goofy embraced me while Donald wiped tears from his eyes.

The King ran to Riku, who lifted him up and spun him in the air. Donald and Goofy hugged me tightly, and we smiled at Riku and the King. I looked at Kairi, who was watching us and giggling. I searched my pocket until I found what I was looking for. I held out Kairi's good luck charm.

I wiped a stray tear from my eye, and looked up at her, again. "W-were back," I said, unsteadily, grinning up at her.

"You're home," she corrected, smiling warmly. She offered her hand to me, and I took it, placing her good luck charm between our outstretched palms. I had promised her that I would come back to her, and I had kept my word.


	2. Chapter 1: A Storm

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts; all character credit (except for the OCs) goes to Disney and Square-Enix.

**Chapter 1: A Storm**

POV: Sora

The three of us stood on the beach, watching the slowly receding shape of the gummi ship. The adventure was over. I could hardly believe it, even now. My friends onboard the gummi ship waved their sad farewells to us. I was going to miss Donald and Goofy and even the mysterious King, but they were needed at Disney Castle.

The King had told me to lock the heart of this world after he left, so that it would be safe from the darkness. But that also meant that the pathways between the worlds would close for good, and I would never be able to see my friends from other worlds again. Despite the glum situation there was a bright side: I had my best friends Riku and Kairi with me again. After the trials and battles of the past two years, we were finally together. And I think we deserved a break.

The tiny speck of light that was the gummi ship winked out of view. I rubbed the teary corners of my eyes.

"Sora, are you okay?" Kairi asked from beside me, concern present in her quiet words. She slipped her hand into mine, and looked up at me, her eyes searching for an answer.

"Yeah, no worries, I'm just going to miss them that's all. I'll be fine," I reassured her, smiling. She squeezed my hand and returned her gaze to the sea.

A warm blush burned my cheeks. Kairi...I had waited so long to stand here on this beach with her again. The lives we led before the storm seemed ethereal now, like a half-remembered dream. 'A scattered dream that's like a far-off memory...' a voice whispered in my head. It sounded familiar but where had I heard those words before?

Before I could figure it out, Riku broke the silence. "There's a storm brewing," he said simply, pointing to the darkening sky.

He was right, I realized. Dark clouds were gathering in the twilit sky. Memories of the last storm that I had witnessed on this island surfaced in my mind. 'A far-off memory that's like a scattered dream...' the voice intoned. I ignored it. That storm had marked the near destruction of the Destiny Islands, and that night the three of us had been flung to different worlds. But we wouldn't be separated again. "If we plan on staying on the Islands tonight, we should probably shelter in the seaside shack," I suggested, starting to walk away with Kairi close behind.

"Aren't you forgetting the keyhole?" Riku asked quietly, not moving from his seat on the paopu tree's branch.

"I promise that I'll do it tomorrow," I offered, scratching my head and smiling sheepishly. I didn't say anything, but I was reluctant to close the keyhole. It would mean completely cutting myself off from the other worlds, and I didn't want to accept that reality. Not yet.

POV: Riku

The wind whipped silver strands of hair into my eyes. A lot had changed since I was last on the Islands. I had been obsessed with the darkness and it had nearly consumed me. When I had tried to protect Kairi, I couldn't, and Sora was the only one who could save her from Xehanort...and from me.

My eyes wandered to Sora and Kairi's intertwined hands. That had changed too. I admitted to myself that I had had feelings for Kairi at one point, but those feelings were gone now, replaced by this emptiness. Jealousy wasn't the word for what I felt towards them, I truly was happy for the two of them; they were perfect for each other. Perfect. A pang of envy pierced my chest. I wanted to be happy like them, laughing and smiling...the way I used to be, before the darkness had tainted me.

Sora's words interrupted my apathy. "Are you coming, Riku?" he called over his shoulder. He was waiting in front of the door to the seaside shack.

"In a minute, I just want to stay out here a bit longer," I replied.

"Riku, are you alright?" Sora asked with a troubled expression on his face.

"I'm fine, I'll be there in a few minutes don't worry," I told him, smiling half-heartedly.

"Okay, if you're sure..." Sora said, and shut the door to the shack.

I looked back to the waves crashing on the beach. A storm was definitely coming, and as if to prove my point, a bolt of lightning sliced through the night sky. Shrugging off my apathy, I stood up. With a sigh, I walked back towards the seaside shack.


	3. Chapter 2: Confessions

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts; all character credit (except for the OCs) goes to Disney and Square-Enix.

**Chapter 2: Confessions**

POV: Kairi

"You're worried about him, aren't you?" I asked Sora as he came in.

He nodded wearily and slumped against the door. "He seems more distant now...and sad," he explained quietly. "He's changed, Kairi."

"We've all changed, Sora," I reassured him, placing my hand back into his. I had always had feelings for Sora, but I never had a chance before the Islands were swallowed by the darkness. But now...I smiled up at him. Now I could finally tell Sora how I felt. "Sora-" I began.

"What is it, Kairi?" he asked seriously, looking into my eyes.

Before I could say anything, the door opened to reveal Riku. "I'm sorry, am I interrupting something?" he asked playfully. He seemed a little more like the old Riku now. But I couldn't help but feel that his smile was a bit forced.

"Nope, nothing going on here," I joked, smiling at them both.

Riku smirked, and said, "I'm going to bed now. I'll see you two _lovebirds_ tomorrow."

"Hey!" Sora exclaimed laughing, but not denying any of Riku's accusations. I think Riku noticed, because his grin grew even wider. I laughed too. It felt like the good ol' days.

"See ya later," Riku added, opening the door to one of the adjoining rooms.

"Sweet dreams," I called teasingly. Riku just smiled and shut the door behind him.

"Riku seems to be feeling better," Sora noted.

"Yeah, he seems to be more like his old self," I agreed. "Sora, about what I was going to say earlier..." my voice trailed off. Now that I had a chance to let Sora know how I felt, I was nervous.

What if he didn't like me, at least not in the way I liked him? My mind was filled with uncertainty, but I swallowed the lump in my throat and continued, "Sora, I really like you....not just as a friend." My cheeks reddened, but I held his gaze.

"I like you too, Kairi," Sora murmured moving closer to me. My heart pounded erratically in my chest as he inched closer to me. He pressed his lips to mine briefly, and then pulled away, smiling.

POV: Riku

I lay awake staring at the ceiling. I wanted to be strong, to live without the weight of my dark past. But I was afraid, that one day the darkness would tempt me again, and I would make the same mistakes as before. The mistakes that had put my friends in danger. I shuddered and rolled onto my side. 'Stop it,' I chastised myself; there was no pointing in worrying about my past. All that mattered was the future. Soon sleep claimed me.

POV: Sora

I embraced Kairi again, unable to believe it. Kairi had feelings for me; I wanted to shout my happiness to the stars. Or at least to the other worlds.

Kairi rested her head on my shoulder, and I told her about all that happened since the Islands were swallowed by darkness. She listened, enthralled. Soon she began to show signs of drowsiness, and while I was softly telling her about what had happened in Twilight Town, she fell asleep. Her face was so peaceful...so beautiful. I didn't want to wake her, but I couldn't let her sleep in the kitchen.

I gently shook her shoulder, and she slowly opened her azure eyes. "We should get some rest," I told her, reluctantly standing. I had been so comfortable sitting there with her. Oh well.

She nodded, blushing. "Good night," she said softly, kissing me on the cheek.

I slipped into the room I shared with Riku, and lay on the unoccupied bed. It had been so long since I had been on the Islands, so long since I had been united with Riku and Kairi. Riku slept soundly in his bed on the other side of the room. How long had it been since those days that the three of us had played together on this Island? I rested my head on my pillow, letting the flow of memories lull me to sleep.


	4. Chapter 3: Nightmares

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts; all character credit (except for the OCs) goes to Disney and Square-Enix.

**Chapter 3: Nightmares**

POV: Riku

That night, I dreamt of Kingdom Hearts. At first, I thought it was because of how Ansem had possessed my body in order to obtain its power. But I quickly realized this was not the case.

_I was in an immense darkness that seemed to continue forever with the luminescence of Kingdom Hearts before me. There were two other people standing beside me, shrouded in smoky grey cloaks with black thorn designs along the edges. Together, the three of us reached out towards the mighty heart, and we were immediately engulfed in a bright light._

_Then the scene of my dreams shifted, to a stormy ocean. Lightning streaked across the sky, and the thunder and the crash of waves were deafening. This felt almost too real to be a dream. I was struggling to stay above the water's surface. My efforts proved useless, as a huge wave crashed down over me. Water filled my lungs and pressed down on me from all sides. I was sinking into the abyss, and I was terrified._

I bolted upright, cold sweat running down my brow. I looked over to the bed on the other side of the room, where Sora was snoring softly. I lay my head back on my pillow, but I couldn't relax; the strange nightmare had ensured that. I stood up and left the room quietly. Walking on the beach always seemed to calm my nerves.

POV: Sora

I had a nightmare that night, which was unusual, seeing as I hardly ever dreamt at all.

_In the dream I saw myself Riku and Kairi standing before an immense white door. My subconscious mind recognized it as the Door to Darkness. The door was open, and the three of us stood with our backs to it. We had our Keyblades drawn, and we were fending off the countless Heartless that swarmed around us._

"_Sora!" Kairi screamed, dragged into the moving black tide by a Neoshadow._

"_Kairi!" I shouted, making the mistake of dropping my guard. Shadows pounced on me, but I managed to fight them off. "Kairi!" I yelled once more, looking around desperately for her. This couldn't be happening._

_Riku was slashing through the waves of Heartless but he faltered, seeing something ahead. I tried in vain to see what he was looking at, but all I could see were Heartless and darkness. Neoshadows knocked him over from behind, and he fell to the ground, eyes staring widely at the oncoming hordes of Heartless. In all the time I had known him, he had never looked so vulnerable. Not even putting up a fight, the Heartless consumed him. His heart floated upwards and then disappeared in a flash of darkness._

"_Lock the door, Sora!" I heard King Mickey shout from the other side of the door._

"_I can't," I whispered, letting my Keyblade clatter to the ground. It was pointless. Kairi and Riku were gone. The Heartless pulled me into the dark oblivion._


	5. Chapter 4: Into the Depths

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts; all character credit (except for the OCs) goes to Disney and Square-Enix.

**Chapter 4: Into the Depths**

POV: Riku

As soon as I opened the door to the shack, a blast of cold wind hit me. Rain pelted me from overhead. Despite this, I found the shoreline soothing. I sat in the wet sand, looking out at the sea, watching the waves rise and fall. It was chaotic as it surged towards the shore, but at the same time it was harmonious how the waves continued, unchanged, for as far as the eye could see.

In amongst the foam of the distant waves I spotted something. I looked on with mild curiosity; it was probably some driftwood. It disappeared beneath the waves only to resurface again, closer to the shore. That is when I realized that it wasn't driftwood; it was a person, struggling against the ocean.

I jumped to my feet and waded out into the fierce waves. Now that I was in the water, it was hard to spot them, and I tried in vain to find the person lost in the ocean's tumult. I swam out deeper, and finally found the person once more. Just as they were sinking beneath the waves.

I pressed on against the waves, and then dove beneath the water's surface. It was dark underwater, and difficult to see. I knew I had to be quick, or this person would probably die. I noticed a shadowy form drifting downwards, and quickly swam deeper to retrieve the person's limp form.

I resurfaced, pulling the person along with me. The person's water-soaked cloak was so heavy; it was weighing me down significantly. If I didn't remove it, I would only lose energy from carrying an extra burden. Our lives depended on my stamina, so I tossed the dark cloak off, where it slowly drifted to the ocean's depths.

I tried to swim to shore, but it was hard to see with the unyielding rain and the crashing of the waves all around me. It was disorienting, but I persevered; I didn't want to die out on the ocean, with Sora and Kairi never knowing what had happened to me. My mind flashed to my dream, water filling my lungs as I sank. I couldn't let that happen, to myself or the unconscious stranger in my arms.

I swam desperately towards what I hoped was shore. To my relief, I saw the familiar shoreline of the Islands. I had almost made it. I was so weary from swimming for so long, but I forced myself to keep going until I had made it to the shallows. From there, I dragged myself and the stranger onto the beach and collapsed.

I lay on my back, staring up at the clouded night sky, trying to catch my breath. I looked to my side and got a good look at the stranger for the first time. Her short black hair was plastered to her face, and her dark clothes clung to her soaked form. She looked pale and drenched. I briefly wondered who she was, and I hoped fervently that I had managed to save her. The physical exhaustion finally took its toll, and I passed out.


	6. Chapter 5: An Unfamiliar Face and a

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts; all character credit (except for the OCs) goes to Disney and Square-Enix.

**Chapter 5: An Unfamiliar Face and a Strange Place**

POV: Sora

I awoke with a start. I couldn't remember the details of my dream, already it had begun to fade from my memory. The only part that I could recall was Riku and Kairi being in terrible danger. I looked over to Riku's bunk, to reassure myself that my friends were fine. To my surprise, his bed was empty, the sheets and blankets lay in a tangle on the bed.

A glance out the window confirmed what I had already guessed, it was dark outside still. So where was Riku? I hopped out of bed, fully awake now. I went into the room in the center of the shack, which doubled as our kitchen and living room for now, taking extra care to be quiet so as not to wake Kairi. He wasn't in here, so the only other logical place for him to be was outside. 'But why would he go outside in the middle of a storm?' I thought, thoroughly puzzled.

I slipped outside and shivered. A cold wind was blowing, accompanied by a drizzle of rain. Immediately I began to search for Riku. He wasn't sitting in the Paopu tree, which is where he had spent a lot of time, even before the darkness had swallowed the Islands. I continued to walk along the beach until I spotted him.

It looked as if he had fallen asleep in the beach, but upon closer inspection I realized he was unconscious, not to mention soaking-wet. There was also a waterlogged girl lying on the beach near him. Despite all of the worlds I had visited, and all of the people that I had met, I could say for certain that I didn't know this girl.

"Riku?"I asked, placing a hand on his shoulder. He didn't move. Without a moment's hesitation, I ran back towards the seaside shack, and into Kairi's room.

"Kairi!" I said urgently, shaking her shoulder gently.

"Mmm...?" she muttered groggily.

"Kairi, it's Riku, I need your help, you've got to get up," I pleaded.

My words jolted her out of her drowsiness. "What's wrong?" she asked, alarm filling her voice.

"Come out to the beach and see for yourself," I replied, leading the way.

POV:??????

I awoke in a daze, in an unfamiliar room. Where was I? The last thing I remembered was water, water everywhere, the crushing pressure of it all around me. Everything before that was a blank. I coughed and seawater spilled from my lips.

"Oh good, you're awake," someone said from the other side of the room.

I turned my head to see a girl standing there, did she know me? The girl had scarlet hair reaching her shoulders and bright blue eyes which were filled with concern. She wore a pink dress decorated with three zippers, of which only one appeared to be functional. Beneath that, she had a white dress, which ended above her pink dress, which reached just above her knees. She had a belt around the waist of her pink dress, with black suspender-like straps hanging down, and a pocket on the left side. Her left arm was adorned with bracelets, and around her neck hung a delicate silver teardrop pendant on a black cord. To complete her outfit, she had pink and white sneakers, laced with black ribbons.

"Who are you? What happened to me? Where are we?" I asked, panic rising in my voice.

"I'm Kairi," she said slowly, seeming to sense the distress in my voice. "To be honest, I'm not quite sure what happened to you, you'll have to ask Riku when he wakes up," she continued. "And you're on Destiny Islands," she added. "Are you feeling alright?" she asked seriously. I nodded, and she smiled, "I'll go see if Riku is awake yet, maybe he'll know something about what happened to you," she offered.

"Thank you," I replied, smiling hopefully.

What had happened to me? My memory seemed like it began when I was being tossed about in the waves. But I knew that was impossible.

Before she left, Kairi turned back to me. "I forgot to ask for your name," she said, turning to look at me from the doorway.

"My name..." I repeated. What was my name? Why couldn't I remember anything? My life seemed to be nothing but questions without answers. Kumori. The name slipped into my head, as if it was merely part of a dream that I couldn't quite recall. "My name is Kumori," I told her, with a little more confidence.

"It's nice to meet you, Kumori," she said genuinely, before closing the door behind herself.

'Why can't I remember anything?!' my mind screamed in frustration. I desperately hoped that this 'Riku' person could shed some light on my missing memories.


	7. Chapter 6: First Impressions

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts; all character credit (except for the OCs) goes to Disney and Square-Enix.

**Chapter 6: First Impressions**

POV: Sora

"Is she alright?" I asked Kairi when she emerged from her room.

"Yeah...at least I think so...though, she doesn't seem to remember what happened to her," she explained, her brow furrowing.

"Do you think Riku will know anything?" I asked her.

"I hope so," she confirmed, creaking open the door to the room Riku and I shared.

"Riku?" I heard her call. The only response she earned was a loud snore. "Riku, wake up!" Kairi demanded. Moments later she emerged, dragging a half-asleep Riku behind her.

"What is it?" he asked his voice heavy with sleep as he stumbled into view.

"She woke up," Kairi explained. "And she wants to know what happened."

"We'd like to know, too," I added.

"C'mon, we all need an explanation, Riku," Kairi said, and without another word slipped into her room, followed closely by Riku. I went in after them, closing the door behind us, trapping the four of us into the small room.

The girl was perched on the edge of the spare bed, looking at each of us in turn. Kairi sat on the bed beside her. "Kumori, this is Sora and Riku," Kairi said, gesturing to Riku and me.

"Hi," the Kumori said shyly, and then looking up at Riku asked quietly, "What happened last night?"

POV: Riku

I swallowed a lump in my throat, getting a second look at the strange girl. Her shaggy black hair went to just above her shoulders, and her bangs fell in a way that partially obscured her right eye. She wore a midnight blue dress that ended just above her knees, and fell to the side to reveal a black under-dress beneath. Across her waist, two black belts crossed, and she wore a black choker on her neck with a pointed diamond emblem. Her amethyst eyes bore into mine, waiting for an answer.

"I was walking on the beach, and I saw you drowning out in the ocean. I'm not sure what happened to you before that, I'm sorry," I explained, returning her gaze.

"Why did you save me? Weren't you afraid to drown?" she asked gravely.

I stared at her incredulously. "You were in trouble, it was just the right thing to do," I replied with a shrug.

"Why put your life on the line for a stranger?" she persisted, tilting her head to the side and looking up at me with her eerie violet eyes.

"I didn't think-" I began, but I was cut off by Sora.

"You don't do that much, huh?" he asked jokingly. Kairi elbowed him in the ribs between giggles. "I'm just kidding, go on," Sora encouraged, still smiling.

"Well, I was just following my instincts, like I said, it felt like the right thing to do," I continued, unsure of what she wanted to know. Kumori seemed to contemplate my answer for a moment, and then nodded, satisfied.

"Sorry for asking so many questions," she apologized, blushing slightly and staring down at her sneakered feet. "I was curious, that's all," she added, in way of an explanation.

My smile softened a little, "It's alright," I told her. "So you can't remember anything but your name? Not even where you're from?" I asked, switching the subject.

Her lavender eyes were consumed with sadness. "No," she murmured quietly, "nothing." It was quite obvious that this troubled her.

"C'mon, I'll show you around the Islands, and we can get your mind off of this until we can figure out if there's anything we can do for your memories," Kairi offered kindly, rising from her seat at the edge of her bed. I thought it was a kind gesture on Kairi's part, but I felt that there wasn't much any of us would be able to do to recover her lost memories.

POV: Kumori

In addition to Kairi, I had met two other people in this strange place.

One boy, the one Kairi had called Sora, had spiky brown hair with bright sapphire blue eyes. He wore a navy t-shirt with red pockets decorating the front. Over that there was a black and white sweater with metal shoulder guards. Blue jeans were underneath a black, baggier pair of pants, which had red pockets adorned with yellow and black straps. On his hands were black, fingerless gloves with crossed stripes across the backs of his palms, yellow stripes on the wrists and metal knuckle guards. Around his neck was a chain with a crown emblem dangling gingerly from it. The shoes on his feet were black and yellow with navy blue straps upon the front. While he looked battle-ready, he seemed easy-going and carefree.

Riku, the one who had saved me, had silvery hair that fell into his striking aquamarine eyes. His shirt was black with a silver zipper through the center. Over that was a white vest with a yellow collar, which had a yellow and blue stripe along the bottom. He wore a pair of faded, baggy blue jeans with a silver studded belt looped through it. His shoes were black and white, threaded through with yellow laces. On his left forearm was a white arm warmer. His face seemed serious, and the aqua depths of his eyes seemed weary.

But perhaps I was reading too much into their appearances. After all, I hardly knew them.

"Alright," I replied smiling at Kairi, standing up as well. Considering the fact that I was a complete stranger, she seemed quite hospitable. We left the shack, and Sora and Riku soon followed. Outside the four of us parted ways, Sora and Riku heading towards a large tree with odd star-shaped fruits in its branches, while Kairi and I wandered towards the other end of the beach.


	8. Chapter 7: A Letter

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts; all character credit (except for the OCs) goes to Disney and Square-Enix.

**Chapter 7: A Letter**

POV: Kairi

"Come on," I said eagerly, leading Kumori out the back door. The poor girl looked so disoriented, but she followed me outside. "This is the Island," I told her, with a dramatic flourish of my arm. She looked around in awe, taking in the sights and sounds, and most importantly, forgetting (even temporarily) her worries. I smiled at her child-like wonder, and the two of us continued on. In minutes the old obstacle course that Sora and Riku used to race each other on came into view.

"What's that?" Kumori asked, pointing to the waist-deep water surrounding the wooden structures. I waded into the water, and returned to Kumori.

"It's a letter in a bottle," I remarked, quite obviously. My eyes focused on the seal and I let out a small gasp. "The King..." I whispered to myself. Kumori shot me a puzzled look. Before she could say a word, I was running to find Sora and Riku.

POV: Sora

Riku and I walked over to the Paopu tree. Fond memories of when the three of us were constructing a raft to visit new worlds came to mind, bringing a smile to my face. Perceptive as ever, Riku noticed immediately.

"What is it?" he asked, a slight smile playing on his lips. He sat down on the largest branch of the Paopu tree.

I ran to catch up to him, and leaned back against the branch beside him, slipping my hands behind my head. I sighed happily. "I was thinking about back before we were all separated. Remember, when we were building the raft?" I relaxed, listening to the sounds of the waves on the beach, and the birds chirping in the trees.

He nodded slowly, looking thoughtfully out at the waters. After a few moments, he spoke again. "Nothing's changed, huh?" he asked

"Nope. Nothing will," I replied, gazing at the sunset. Everything was so peaceful here.

"What a small world," Riku remarked wistfully.

"But part of one that's much bigger," I added, in the hopes of cheering him up, even in the slightest.

"Yeah," he agreed.

"Hey Riku...what do you think it was-the door to the light?" I asked suddenly looking up at him. He jumped down from his perch on the tree branch, and turned to face me.

Riku tapped the center of my chest lightly. "This?" I asked, resting my hand over my chest, looking up at him expectantly.

"Yeah. It's always closer than you think," Riku answered sagely. Dropping my hand to my side, I grinned at him.

Kairi's voice pierced the air. "Sora! Riku!" she called out to us, running across the sand towards us.

"Hey, what's up?" I asked her. She was bent double, trying to catch her breath.

"Look," she said, holding out a bottle containing a note. The letter had the King's seal on it.

"From the King?" I asked, not waiting for an answer I took the bottle from her hands. I emptied the contents of the bottle into my hand. My heart beat loudly in my chest, and I wondered what could be so urgent that the King would contact us the day after we defeated Xemnas. It seemed so sudden, and it worried me. I began reading the note, and Riku and Kairi leaned closer to me, reading over my shoulder.

The note read:

Sora, Riku and Kairi,

I'm so sorry to bother y'all, after how much you've done for the worlds, but we have a crisis on our hands once more. The Heartless are gathering in greater numbers than ever before, and it seems like someone else is controlling them. And someone is going around, unlocking the Hearts of the worlds and making them more vulnerable to the darkness. I'm not sure if there's a connection between the two but I need you three to journey across the worlds again and relock the Hearts. I will try to find and stop whoever is behind this. I hope this can be resolved quickly so ya can return to your world.

P.S: The gummi ship you shared with Donald and Goofy should still be at the dock

"I have to go, the worlds need me," I stated as soon as I had finished reading the letter.

"The worlds need us, all of us," Kairi corrected me.

"Yeah," Riku agreed. "But what about-" he began, but his words were cut short.


	9. Chapter 8: Explanations

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts; all character credit (except for the OCs) goes to Disney and Square-Enix.

**Chapter 8: Explanations**

POV: Kumori

"What's going on?" I enquired, looking at each of their faces in turn. I was almost afraid, whatever this letter said, it must be important, or else they wouldn't look so serious.

Riku and Sora exchanged glances. "We have to leave..." Sora started to say.

"Why? Where will you go?" I asked before he had a chance to finish.

After a moment's hesitation, he continued. "You see, there are these creatures that exist, called the Heartless. They come from the darkness in people's hearts. But worlds, like this one, have hearts too, and if they're unlocked, they are more vulnerable to the darkness. Someone is unlocking the worlds' hearts, and manipulating the Heartless," he explained.

"So there are more worlds than this one? How do you lock or unlock a world's heart? What does this have to do with you leaving?" I burst out, my questions coming in a relentless torrent.

"Slow down there," Riku muttered under his breath, a smirk on his face.

"Yes, there are countless worlds out there," Sora replied, pointing to the sky. "You unlock a world with this," he continued, holding out his hand in front of him. With a bright flash of light, a large silver key appeared in his hand. The handle was dark silver with a blue stripe encircling where the shaft met the golden handle-guard. From the bottom of the handle-guard dangled a chain with a small metal pendant. Strangely enough, the pendant was the same shape as the seal on the letter.

"It's called a Keyblade," Kairi said before I could voice my question.

"It can lock and unlock doors and hearts, but the Heartless are also drawn to it, because of the wielder's strong heart" Riku interjected.

"It's also a weapon against the Heartless," Sora finished. He opened his palm, and instead of falling to the ground, the Keyblade disappeared with a shimmer of light.

"We wield Keyblades too," Kairi mentioned, and with another burst of light, a Keyblade appeared in her outstretched hand. It was still recognizable as a Keyblade, but quite different than the one Sora had. Kairi's Keyblade seemed considerably more delicate. The shaft of the blade was yellow where it met the black handle, and faded to orange and red towards the tip which was decorated brightly coloured flowers and leaves. Hanging from the handle guard was a scarlet braid with a yellow star-shaped fruit symbol. Twined around the shaft was a golden vine, the same hue as most of the handle guard except where the gold faded to aqua and then a deep blue.

The same rich blue as Sora's eyes, and the same aquamarine as Riku's eyes, and flowers that resembled a few of those that I had seen on the Islands. Could the appearance of a Keyblade depend on the wielder? I looked over at Riku, who also held a Keyblade in the palm of his hand.

Where Sora's Keyblade was plain and regal, and Kairi's was cheery and vibrant, Riku's Keyblade was a contrast of dark and light. Like the two were warring with each other. The handle was red with navy blue grips, surrounded by two wing-shaped handle guards. One pure, feathery white wing, and one black and indigo wing that was membranous like a bat's. Where the handle guards met was a white and grey cross, from which there was a chain with an odd, heart-shaped symbol at the end. The shaft of the Keyblade was one large navy blue wing connected with a thin crimson membrane, which met the handle guards at a bright aqua eye, slightly darker than Riku's own. From the tip of the large wing, a small grey-feathered wing protruded.

In a moment, Kairi and Riku's Keyblades disappeared as well. "You didn't answer my last question," I said nonchalantly.

"Oh, right," Sora replied, grinning sheepishly. "As the Keyblade wielders, we are the only ones who can stop this person who is unlocking the hearts of the worlds, and bring them to justice," he continued seriously.

"There's one thing I don't understand," I told them.

"What's that?" Kairi prompted.

"Wouldn't this person need a Keyblade to unlock the hearts of the worlds?"


	10. Chapter 9: Preparations

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts; all character credit (except for the OCs) goes to Disney and Square-Enix.

**Chapter 9: Preparations**

POV: Riku

With a shock I realized she had a point. A very good point, at that.

"It's possible..." Sora said thoughtfully.

"It makes sense," I added flatly. "I used a Keyblade, even though my heart was shrouded in darkness," I stated without emotion. I didn't want to think of those times when I had been Maleficent's pawn, but a voice in the back of my mind reminded me that I would have to come to grips with it sooner or later.

My emotions must have been plain on my face, because Kumori shot me a questioning look. Surprisingly she didn't mention it, instead she asked, "So you have to leave then, to stop this person?"

"Yeah," Sora answered simply, Kairi nodded her agreement beside him. Both of them watched me expectantly.

"Yeah," I replied softly, pulling myself out of the dark pool of memories.

"What will I do?" Kumori said, almost to herself. The look in her eyes was one of uncertainty and fear.

"We can't leave her here; she doesn't know the area at all, and Selphie, Tidus and Wakka are on one of the other Islands," Kairi told us helplessly.

"I'm so sorry; I don't want to be a burden to you. I never meant to-" Kumori whispered aloud. The guilt in her voice was thick, and I could see the tell-tale glimmer of tears in her eyes. "I'm sorry..." she apologized again, hanging her head. Shimmering tears fell onto the sand.

Kairi was at her side at once and wrapped a comforting arm around her shoulder. "It's alright, it's not even your fault, don't feel bad," she assured her in a soothing voice.

"She could come with us," I suggested.

"Wouldn't that be dangerous for her?" Kairi asked. Kumori had calmed down now, though her eyes were red-rimmed now, and Kairi remained beside her.

"I could teach her a couple of spells, just in case," Sora offered, smiling kindly at Kumori. She smiled back, though it was a little shaky.

"We might even find the world she came from, or someone might recognize her," I added, though I had a feeling that the issue was already decided.

POV: Kairi

"So it's settled then, we'll all go together," I said decisively. I looked at Sora and Riku, but neither objected.

"Are you sure?" Kumori asked quietly, looking from one face to another.

We all nodded in unison.

"Of course. We'll set out tomorrow, so we should probably start packing now," Sora concluded, walking towards the shack. While Riku and Kumori followed him, I hesitated.

I shut my eyes, savouring the feeling of the light breeze on my face, the sound of the crashing waves. Opening my eyes, I looked at the vibrant beauty that was Destiny Islands. This was our home. I hoped that I would be able to return here soon, and that we would return together this time. All of us.

I found Kumori standing alone in the kitchen, and the door to Sora and Riku's room flung open. To say the room was a disaster would be an understatement. I smirked and turned to Kumori. "Let's get packed and ready to go," I told her enthusiastically, winning a smile in response.

"You can borrow some of my clothes, since you only have what you're wearing. You look like you're about my size" I declared, handing her a couple of outfits, and tossing some into my own suitcase. "You can pack them in the bag sitting on the guest bed-well, your bed," I corrected myself.

"Thanks," she answered, smiling in appreciation. In a few moments packing was done, mostly since Kumori didn't have much to pack and instead helped me ready my belongings for the trip. I sighed falling back against my bed.

"Are you hungry?" I asked her; no one knew when the last time Kumori had eaten, and besides, it was getting late. She nodded shyly. "Let's go make something then," I told her, standing once more.

POV: Kumori

Kairi proved to be quite a cook; dinner that night was amazing. It turns out, wild mushrooms and other edible vegetables grew around the Islands, and fish were plentiful in the shallow waters. Using the food that was already in the kitchen, Kairi created a meal of fish and salad, with coconut milk to drink.

The dinner conversation was light and teasing, and once in a while someone would include me in the conversation. But most of the time, I was worrying about my missing memories. When the night was over and we retired to our rooms, it was still nagging in the back of my mind.

"Are you still worried about not remembering anything?" Kairi asked from across the room.

"Yeah," I replied, sighing. "I keep wondering if I had family and friends, and that they might be worried sick for me, or that maybe something terrible happened in my past and it's the reason I can't remember my life," I confided.

"Whatever it is, I don't think it could have been that bad," Kairi said in a sure voice.

"Why's that?" I asked her, truly puzzled.

"Whatever happened brought you here, so it couldn't have been that bad," she reassured me.

"I guess so," I replied. "And thanks, Kairi. I know that I don't know you well, but you've been really kind to me, and well I just wanted to thank you, and apologize for any problems my presence here has caused," I mumbled groggily. For a person who had slept for half of the day, I was really tired.

"Don't worry," Kairi answered, yawning. "Goodnight," she said, her voice slurred with weariness.

"Goodnight," I repeated, turning on my side. Despite the day's events, I was asleep in moments.


	11. Chapter 10: Training and Travel

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts; all character credit (except for the OCs) goes to Disney and Square-Enix.

**Chapter 10: Training and Travel**

POV: Sora

After rousing ourselves early, we immediately began preparations for leaving. Riku and Kairi loaded our items into the gummi ship, while I tried to fit in some last-minute magic training with Kumori before we left.

"Try one more time, but this time, concentrate on the outcome. You have to believe that you can summon the fire," I advised her. She nodded and took a deep breath.

"Fire!" she exclaimed in a steady, confident voice, her arm outstretched towards a log on the beach. Flames erupted from the dry wood.

"Good job," I commended her. After a few tries of only achieving smoke and sparks, she had succeeded.

"I did it this time!" she cheered joyfully. I noticed that today she seemed a little less afraid of us, a little more confident.

"Now let's try to put it out. The incantation is 'blizzard'," I mentioned before she had the chance to ask. One thing that hadn't changed since yesterday was that she still asked a non-stop barrage of questions. But I figured that would go away when she knew more about us and about the worlds in general.

Kumori nodded her understanding. "Blizzard!" she commanded. Nothing happened. Disappointment showed on her face, but she quickly replaced it with determination. "Blizzard!" she repeated, a bit louder this time. This time there was a cold wind, and a couple of snowflakes fluttered through the air. "Blizzard!" she shouted once more, her voice rising even louder.

I must have been standing in the way, because the next thing I knew, I was hit full force with icy winds and a surge of snow. Riku and Kairi emerged from the gummi ship, and on seeing me, clutched their sides in fits of laughter. I ignored it as best I could, though I grinned a little. "Great job!" I congratulated Kumori, who was bright red with embarrassment. Clambering out of the pile of snow, I turned to Kairi and Riku. "Are we all set to go now?" I asked, trying to keep a straight face. They nodded, their laughter finally subsiding.

"I can teach you more spells when we're visiting other worlds," I assured Kumori, and then to everyone, "Let's go!"

The gummi ship was a little crowded with all four of us inside, but we managed to fly comfortably until we reached the first world. I recognized Neverland immediately. Briefly, I wondered how Peter and Wendy were doing, but soon had to push those thoughts out of my head and concentrate on landing.

Standing outside of the gummi ship, I took a moment to examine our surroundings. The view was breathtaking. Truth be told, I had only ever been to the clock tower and Captain Hook's ship, and I wasn't quite sure exactly where in Neverland we were. The four of us stood on a rocky outcrop, a giant waterfall crashing to our right, and an enormous mountain stretching thousands of feet above us. Beneath us was a tropical forest, bordered on all sides by an endless ocean. The island was diverse, with lagoons, hollows, caves and brightly coloured foliage. The shores actually reminded me of Destiny Islands. The sun was at its peak in the sky, and we stood on the cliff quietly, savouring the awe-inspiring moment.

"It's so beautiful," Kairi murmured, her eyes following a flock of brilliantly coloured birds as they soared by.

"Welcome to Neverland," I announced. "I guess we should start looking for the keyhole," I said, tearing myself away from the magnificent sight.

"Where should we start?" Kumori asked, her eyes still riveted to the sky.

"We'll just have to find Peter," I said decisively. Taking a last look at the sky, we began trekking through the underbrush.

The going was slow because of all of the plant life, and the intense heat didn't do much to help. There was so much green, I soon had no idea where we were. Olive-green vines twined around emerald trees, jade grass was overshadowed by dark green underbrush. We'd be lucky if we could find our way back to the gummi ship.

It became too exhausting and warm to carry out a normal conversation. Hours passed, and no one spoke much. We emerged from the endless sea of green at a peaceful clearing. The sun was setting, and we still hadn't run into Peter, Tinkerbelle, Wendy, or even Hook.

Resting our bags on the ground, we collapsed in a heap on the grass. "We should stop here, for the night," Kairi panted, "and set out in the morning." All of us immediately agreed; we were exhausted from struggling through the forest for hours on end. Kumori shivered a little as the remaining rays of sunlight disappeared over the horizon.

"Let's start a fire," Riku suggested kindly. Collecting dry sticks from the forest was easy, and with a well-aimed fire spell our campfire was ready. We ate a meagre meal of food leftover from last night's dinner on the Island, and huddled around the campfire for warmth. Not long afterwards, we were all curled up in our respective sleeping bags, and soon fell into a peaceful sleep.


	12. Chapter 11: Friends and Enemies

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts; all character credit (except for the OCs) goes to Disney and Square-Enix.

**Chapter 11: Friends and Enemies**

POV: Riku

A sudden noise woke me from my dreams. At first, I couldn't quite pinpoint what exactly had disturbed my slumber, until I heard it again. It was voice singing, not too far from here. Perhaps it was one of Sora's friends that we had thus far been unable to find. Standing I decided to check it out. I looked at the sleeping faces of my companions. It would be best to let them sleep. Looking to the sky, I noted that it was nearing daybreak. Without a backwards glance, I walked off in the direction the voice was coming from.

As I came closer to the mysterious singer, more voices added to the harmony. I found the melody so enticing that I began walking faster. The music was so breathtaking, like the gentle sound of the waves lapping at the beach. I wondered who could make such beauty with their words.

The song ended, and it felt as if my heart stopped with it. I ached to hear more...and then I began to wonder why I was so eager to find the singer anyways. But the thought was pushed out of my mind as the voices began to sing again. My footsteps were soft and light against the springy meadow. Soon I saw rocks jutting out from the soil. And then there was no soil at all, no ground, only air.

I didn't panic; nothing could happen with the sound of such a sweet song piercing the night. I fell serenely, not quite comprehending what was going on. The only certainty was the song. In a slow, almost carefree manner, I looked down below me. The view jarred me out of my calm reverie. A tranquil lagoon stretched out beneath me and jagged rocks penetrated the water's surface. Sitting upon those rocks were beautiful, scantily-clad women. Instead of legs, they had fish-tails. Mermaids, I thought in a daze. A red-haired mermaid smiled cruelly at me as I plunged into the icy waters.

POV: Kairi

I stifled a yawn and opened my eyes sleepily. The sun was rising, and so were Sora and Kumori. I sat up and shocked washed over me. Riku was gone.

"Where's Riku?" I asked, realizing too late that the two of them were probably as clueless as I was.

"He can take care of himself," Sora said, rubbing his eyes.

"What if he's in trouble, what if the Heartless found him?" I persisted, my anxiety growing more intense by the second. Riku wouldn't have wandered off on his own...would he?

"Maybe Kairi's right. We should probably check on him, just in case," Kumori put in, getting to her feet. Sora looked like he was about to argue, but closed his mouth quickly. There was laughter from the opposite direction of where we'd been walking. The laughter was cold and mocking.

"Let's go," Sora, added grimly, walking towards the source of the commotion.

We followed quickly, the menacing laughter and splashing increased as we approached. Finally, we understood what was happening. Standing on a ledge above the water, we could see Riku to resurface while three mermaids tried to drown him. Pools of darkness appeared under the water, and from them poured Heartless.

Keyblade in hand, Sora immediately dived into the water to save Riku. I took a deep breath, and saw Kumori do the same beside me. Then, suddenly, there was a cold clammy hand around my ankle. Startled, I screamed as a grinning mermaid dragged me into the lagoon.

POV: ????? ???

A girl's scream pierced the air. "Do you think it's Jane?" I asked the tiny fairy perched on a tree branch next to me. She shrugged, causing pixie dust to fall from her gossamer wings.

I was worried. Jane had been gone all night. She wouldn't have deserted the Lost Boys...she wouldn't have left me... Would she?

"Let's go see anyways," I told her, soaring to where the noise had come from. Tinkerbelle fluttered behind me reluctantly.

POV: Sora

Upon entering the water I swam to Riku. Two mermaids watched him gloatingly from above, blocking his access to the surface-and air. Another three held him down on the sandy bottom. He was struggling, but the lack of oxygen was clearly getting to him. In front of him were dozens of Shadows and Neoshadows, ready to pounce.

The mermaids were terrible, but they weren't Heartless. Not wanting to hurt them, vicious though they might be, I hesitated. Just as another person was dragged into the water, by yet another mermaid. It was Kairi. I desperately wanted to go to her, but that would mean leaving Riku to the Heartless and mermaids.

My attention was caught by the mermaids near the surface of the water; they were gesturing at each other, and speaking. Or at least I thought they were speaking; I couldn't tell what they were saying, but their lips were moving so I assumed they were talking. All six mermaids resurfaced. Free from the mermaid who'd tormented her, Kairi swam towards us with her Keyblade gripped tightly in her hand. We still had to deal with the Heartless. And I was running out of breath. Riku seemed dazed; no doubt he would pass out soon. I pointed upwards, at a large rock that broke the water's surface. Kairi nodded in understanding, and the three of us burst out of the water.

Gasping for air, Kairi and I pulled Riku onto the rock. He was still awake, but he was coughing up water.

"Sora!" a familiar voice called. I glanced up to see Peter waving at us. He was balancing upon an algae covered rock, with Tinkerbelle hovering over his shoulder. Turning to the mermaids, he muttered a few more words, and then glided effortlessly towards us. The mermaids floated towards the base of a waterfall, with pouty expressions on their eerily perfect faces. At least they no longer seemed to pose a threat to us.

Alighting beside us, Peter unsheathed his dagger, his eyes intent on the water. Looking down, I saw the Heartless scurrying towards us from beneath the still waters. The four of us stood back to back, facing the oncoming horde. The next few minutes were a blur of motion. The first of the Heartless tried to clamber onto the rock island. We dealt with them quickly, dispatching them with swift strokes of our Keyblades, or in Peter's case, with his dagger. But they kept coming, wave after wave of Heartless.

Slowly, we began to tire, and Riku was the first to falter. A Shadow had climbed up in front of him, and Riku had swung his Keyblade. Unfortunately, he missed, and the Shadow crawled close to the ground trying to find an opening in his guard. Seconds before Way to the Dawn collided with it, the Shadow slashed at Riku's leg. A Neoshadow emerging from the depths took advantage of his weakness and pounced. We were all being overwhelmed by the Heartless, and there was no way for us to help each other without losing our own personal battles.

"Fire!" Kumori practically shrieked, her outstretched hand guiding her magic. The ball of flames struck the Neoshadow, reducing it to nothingness. Riku smiled gratefully at her before turning his attention back to the Heartless. Kumori began aiming spells at the Heartless that were just surfacing, to eliminate the possibility of hitting one of us by mistake.

Exhaustion began to take its toll. Minutes had passed, but I could swear it could have been days. Just as I began to lose hope, the flood of Heartless was reduced to a trickle, and then to nothing. The four of us collapsed, breathing heavily. Placing a hand on Kairi's shoulder I asked, "Are you alright?"

She nodded, leaning wearily against me. "Riku? Peter? Are you guys okay?" I asked. They nodded. It was silent as we took a few moments to catch our breath.

"What brings you to Neverland, Sora? And who are these people?" Peter enquired, looking from Riku to Kairi, to Kumori and then me.

"This is Kairi-" I began, but Peter quickly interrupted me.

"The one that was trapped on the Jolly Roger with Wendy? So you decided to bring her to Neverland after all. Did you bring her so she could try flying?" Peter asked beaming. I could vaguely remember having a conversation with Peter about bringing Kairi here to visit. I smiled.

"Not quite, the Heartless population is increasing, and as the Keyblade masters, we're in charge of figuring out whose doing this," I said, choosing my words carefully. I didn't want to 'meddle' as Donald and Goofy would have worded it. I felt a little pang of longing; thinking of them made me realize how much I missed them.

"So who are they?" Peter asked bluntly, pointing to Riku and Kumori.

"They're my friends," I replied cheerily. At that, a troubled look clouded over Peter's face. "What's wrong?" I asked him.

"Jane's been missing for hours...I don't think she would've abandoned us...but I don't know where she is," he explained.

"Who's Jane?" I asked; I had never heard of her before. What about Wendy?

"She's Wendy's daughter," Peter explained. I was shocked. More time must have passed here than I had thought.

"Oh. Well, we'll help you look for her," I assured him. "Do you think it was Hook?" I asked grimly, looking out at his ship. It wasn't very far offshore.

"Maybe..." he replied thoughtfully.

"Let's go then," Riku said, getting to his feet. We all stood.

"How will we get there? We don't have a boat," Kumori spoke up from the rocky outcrop.

I grinned. "We fly," I stated simply.

Riku, Kairi and Kumori all stared at me. "Are you serious?" Kairi asked.

"Yeah," I told them.

"All you need pixie dust and a little faith," Peter added. He said something in hushed tones to Tinker Bell, who darted towards us, weaving through the air over our heads. Golden, glittery powder fell from her delicate wings.

I floated upwards with ease. "See? It's easy," I told them.


	13. Chapter 12: The Rescue

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts; all character credit (except for the OCs) goes to Disney and Square-Enix.

**Chapter 12: Rescue**

POV: Kumori

I watched in amazement as Sora and Peter floated in the air. "Try it!" Sora encouraged us. It looked so effortless, so graceful!

Kairi was the first to try. Closing her eyes she glided upwards. "This is incredible," she gushed, hugging Sora. The next to rise into the air was Riku.

My turn. But what if something went wrong? What if I couldn't fly? But the proof that flying was possible was right before my eyes. Still, what if I made a mistake? All of these thoughts rushed through my mind in the space of a few moments. They all looked expectantly at me.

Taking a deep breath, I closed my eyes and stepped off of the ledge. There was no noise, no splash to mark my entry into the water. I opened my eyes to see I was hovering over the lagoon. I smiled, I couldn't believe this.

And that was my mistake. For a moment, my faith in this whole crazy stunt faltered and I began plummeting to the water. After nearly drowning a couple of days ago, falling into the water wasn't a great prospect. I shut my eyes tightly, bracing myself for the impact.

But thankfully someone reacted. He was closer to the outcrop than anyone else, and soared towards me as I fell. Riku caught me before I could hit the water, and helped steady me until I regained my focus on flying. "Thanks," I said, my cheeks turning red in embarrassment.

"It's alright," he said nonchalantly, floating back towards the others.

"What about them?" Sora inquired, gesturing to the mermaids sulking over by the waterfall.

"Leave them. They won't bother you again," Peter said, shooting them a cold look. "Now, let's go," he insisted, a touch of impatience in his voice. Following Peter and the fairy he called Tinkerbelle, we glided up and through the clouds, to the crimson ship anchored in the cove. Above the ship, we hid within clouds, contemplating our next move.

"There's Jane!" Peter exclaimed, pointing towards the base of the mast. There was Jane, secured to the wooden column with thick ropes. The ship was crawling with pirates, human and Heartless alike. In amongst them all, and shouting orders, was Hook himself.

Our cloud cover shifted and glancing up, Hook spotted us. "Fire!" he shouted. There was an ear-shattering explosion as two cannon balls arced through the air towards us. They narrowly missed, and fell to the waves below.

"Quick, get down to the ship! I'll untie Jane and bring her to safety, while you four hold off the pirates," Peter ordered, zooming off towards the deck.

Upon reaching the deck, Peter rushed over to Jane, while we confronted the pirates. They came at us, brandishing their swords, and we took them down, one by one, until we were face-to-face with Hook.

Seeing Riku, he sneered. "Still alive, boy?" he spat, swinging at Riku. He dodged, gritting his teeth. "Blizzard!" I shouted, aiming an onslaught of ice at a pirate Heartless. Facing me were the two remaining Heartless, while Riku grappled with Hook, Sora fought off three unsightly pirates, and Kairi struggled against a small chubby pirate wielding a shiny sabre and a scrawnier one holding a pistol.

Sora, Kairi and I finished our battles and went to aid Riku, who had just been slashed by Hook's rapier, on his leg that had been injured in our previous fight with the Heartless. Crying out, he fell to his knees, but before Hook could finish him off, Sora was in front of Riku, blocking the attack.

The four of us moved closer to him, cornering him against the plank. "Give it up, Hook, you can't win" Sora told him confidently. There was fear in Hook's eyes. We came closer, and he stepped back onto the plank. "Surrender," Sora repeated. "

"Never," Hook snarled defiantly, taking another step back. And another. But then there was no plank to support him, and he fell into the swirling waters.

We watched in shock, and he began to swim off. But then he froze. The unmistakable sound of ticking was growing louder by the second. A large green crocodile surfaced, swimming steadily towards Hook. He panicked, struggling to swim away as the crocodile opened its jaws. Its mouth was opened so wide, you could see into its stomach. A clock was ticking insistently from within.

Suddenly, Sora, Riku and Kairi's keyblades lit up. In unison, they raised them and pointed them at the crocodile's massive jaws. A beam of light shot from the tips of the three keyblades, and uniting to strike the clock. A shimmery light appeared in the shape of a keyhole, and then disappeared.

During this time, Hook had begun his frantic swim to shore. The crocodile now followed him, the rhythmic ticking gone.

"What was that?" I asked Sora.

"It was the keyhole for the heart of this world. We sealed it," he explained.

"Where are Peter and Jane?" Kairi asked, gazing around the abandoned ship.

"They must have gone to shore, come on, let's head back for the gummi ship," Riku suggested.

The way back this time was much easier, now that we could fly instead of walk, and we were there in a matter of minutes. Peter and Jane were waiting there for us.

"Thank you Sora, for rescuing me, and you three too" Jane said politely.

"You're leaving already?" Peter asked with disappointment clear on his young face.

"Yeah," Sora replied.

"Will you come back?" Peter asked hopefully.

"I don't really know," Sora answered, and the four of us boarded the ship.


	14. Chapter 13: The Labyrinth

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts; all character credit (except for the OCs) goes to Disney and Square-Enix.

**Chapter 13: The Labyrinth **

POV: Riku

Sora landed the gummi ship in a grassy field. Before us stretched a huge labyrinth of towering green hedges. "Wow," Kumori breathed, looking around in awe.

"Yeah," Kairi agreed quietly, gazing at the giant expanse of green. I turned around to see hedges that surrounded us completely.

"We're in Wonderland," Sora told us, recognizing the scenery.

"And it looks like the only way forward is through the maze," Kairi observed. Walking to the entrance of the labyrinth, we saw two paths.

"Should we go right or left?" I asked.

"We could split up, and two of us could go each way," Sora suggested.

"But then how will we find each other when we've reached the exit?" Kairi asked reasonably.

"Sora or I could cast a fire spell into the air," Kumori offered.

"Sounds good," I replied.

"Fair enough," Kairi added.

"Kairi and I will go left, and Riku and Kumori, you guys go right. Is that alright?" he asked us all. Kairi smiled.

"It's fine with me," Kumori said, looking questioningly at me with her bright violet eyes.

"Sure," I shrugged looking away quickly.

"Alright, we'll see you guys later. Don't forget to signal us if you find the exit first," Sora reminded us as he and Kairi began to walk away. I saw him grasp Kairi's hand, and I turned away. Ever since we had returned to the Island, there had been moments like this where I felt cut off from them. They were in their own little world where I didn't matter.

"Let's go," I said gruffly, walking ahead.

POV: Kairi

We walked side-by-side in silence, our hands intertwined. White roses snaked through the hedges.

"Do you think it was fair to make them go together? Maybe I should have gone with Kumori. She hardly knows Riku," I said suddenly, stopping in my tracks.

"They'll be fine. Besides, Kumori hardly knows any of us," Sora replied. He did have a point. "Would you rather have gone with her?" he asked hesitantly, looking down.

"No, no, of course not," I answered quickly, smiling reassuringly. We kept walking hand-in-hand, until we reached a dead end. I yawned quietly. The sun was going down over the horizon.

"Should we stop here?" I asked Sora.

"Sure, you seem tired," he agreed.

"So you noticed," I giggled. A wave of déjà vu hit me. I remembered saying those same words to Riku, a year ago. Riku…he had changed so much in the past couple of years, but he wouldn't open up, that much hadn't changed. Unfortunately, neither had his irritating ability to remain completely unreadable.

"Are you okay, Kairi?" Sora asked concernedly.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I told him smiling. With a sinking feeling, I realized that we had left our supplies in the gummi ship. Oh well. I curled up on the ground, and I think at that point, Sora realized our supplies were missing too. I shivered involuntarily from the chilly dusk air.

"Are you cold?" Sora asked, and not waiting for a reply, slipped off his hooded sweater and placed it over my shoulders.

"Thanks, Sora," I said, blushing brightly in embarrassment.

He smiled. "No problem," he added, lying down next to me. "Goodnight, Kairi," he said softly, wrapping his arms around me.

I nestled closer to him. "Goodnight, Sora," I replied, my words muffled against his chest. I fell soundly asleep in his arms.

POV: Kumori

I held my tongue for a few minutes, but finally the silence became unbearable.

"Are you alright?" I asked him tentatively. Ever since we left, he had seemed upset.

"I'm fine," he muttered antisocially.

"I'm sorry," I murmured, walking forward with my eyes on my feet.

He stopped abruptly, and I almost walked into him. "Don't be sorry, it's not your fault. It's just-I'm on edge, that's all. I'm sorry for taking it out on you," he told me. His calm composure disappeared for a moment and he seemed weary and…worried.

"Alright," I said quietly, not meeting his eyes. He was probably lying for my sake. I had simply showed up in their lives out of nowhere, how could I have expected them to welcome me with open arms and accept me as a friend? I sighed quietly.

Riku maintained a stony silence ahead of me. I trailed my fingers along the hedge and cried out in surprise. Tiny rivulets of blood ran through my fingers, and I soon saw the reason. White roses grew among the hedges; their sharp thorns had torn at my palm.

"Are you alright?" Riku asked, pausing up ahead. I gritted my teeth and clenched my bleeding palm. I wasn't going to cause them more trouble than I already had. Least of all to Riku; he seemed to be the one who liked me least out of the group. Kairi had welcomed me with open arms, and Sora had been warm and kind…but Riku was distant.

"I'm fine," I lied, jogging ahead to catch up. He shrugged and kept walking. Once more I kept my curiosity at bay, but eventually failed. "Uh…Riku? Do you…feel excluded from Sora and Kairi…since they're…um… together?" I asked curiously. It seemed like the most likely cause of his melancholic silence.

I regretted my words immediately. He turned his head to look at me. His aquamarine eyes flashed with cold anger, then defensiveness, and finally, resignation. "I…uh…yeah, I guess I do," he replied thoughtfully, the walls around him falling again.

The pain I saw on his troubled face was so raw, that I had to force myself to look away. "I'm sorry…" I said softly. "I didn't mean to hurt you. If you want, I can go on my own next time, I don't mind really," I offered helplessly. "I…I feel like a burden to all of you. You hardly know me, and I'm almost completely useless in battle. Maybe it would be best if I just left," I confided in him miserably. He had opened up to me; it seemed only fair that I would be willing to do the same for him. Though I doubted he really cared about me or my problems…I hung my head, and kept walking.

I stopped when he placed a hand on my shoulder, and I turned to face him, but kept my eyes downcast. "We would have said something if we didn't want you travelling with us. You weren't useless in battle, and besides, Sora can teach you more spells so you can hold your own in a fight," I looked up at him, and he returned my gaze warmly.

And then I did something irrational and spur of the moment. I hugged him. Despite the fact that he seemed cold and distant, he was actually caring. Fate had twisted my life around cruelly, to the point that I hardly even knew who I was, but maybe things weren't really that bad. Riku had opened up to me, which was a start, and Sora and Kairi were so very kind. "Thanks," I whispered into his shoulder.

He hesitantly placed his hand on my back, and we stayed like that a moment. I felt so at ease in his arms…wait…what? I couldn't believe I had just thought that! I hardly knew any of them; I should hardly feel comfortable in someone's arms. Someone I'd known for barely a day. Banishing those thoughts from my mind, I felt my cheeks turning red. I pulled away abruptly, hoping he wouldn't notice the bright colour of my cheeks. "Sorry," I muttered nervously. A small smile tilted the corners of his mouth.

"Let's keep going," he suggested, the smile still playing on his lips. I nodded and we continued on, and I let my thoughts wander. The first thing that came to mind was my missing memories. I wondered who I was, who I'd known, what my life had been like. If I had the chance, I decided, I would learn about who I was. But right now, I was happy to live my life travelling the worlds with Sora, Kairi and Riku.

My thoughts were interrupted when I saw Riku stumble on the ground with his hand holding his leg. I ran over and knelt down beside him. "Are you alright?" I asked in concern. He grimaced, and moving his hand from his leg, I spotted a blossoming red stain.


	15. Chapter 14: Down the Rabbit Hole

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts; all character credit (except for the OCs) goes to Disney and Square-Enix.

**Chapter 14: Down the Rabbit Hole**

POV: Riku

Kumori sank to her knees beside me, concern written across her face. It was nice of her to care, when it seemed like Sora and Kairi didn't anymore. They were the center of each other's universes. I had no idea why I'd opened up to Kumori. Perhaps it was since my old friends wouldn't listen. Stop it, I chided myself. I was being bitter for no reason. How was I going to keep the darkness at bay if all I did was pity myself?

I sighed, clenching my leg. "Your leg was injured at Neverland?" she asked softly. I nodded, pulling my hand back from my leg. It came away covered in blood. She rolled up my pant leg, exposing the wound. It revealed a shallow cut from my ankle to my knee, without a doubt inflicted by Hook's sword. Across it were three deeper slashes, probably gouged by the Heartless's claws.

Her eyes widened, but she didn't flinch away. She moved her hand down to the edge of her dress. It was a pale blue one that Kairi had lent her, and she didn't hesitate to tear a strip from it. Gently she wrapped my leg with the soft fabric. I winced; it stung.

"I'm sorry," she apologized, "I think this will be enough for now." She finished securing the material tightly to my leg. In moments, spots of red began to show through it. I nodded, and made a move to get up, but Kumori pushed me back to the ground lightly. "Rest a little," she advised, "besides, the sun's already gone down. There's nothing else for us to do tonight."

"Okay," I conceded, too tired to argue. Lying on the cold ground and gazing at the sky, I thought of all of the stars in the sky, and the world's that they represented. Despite the pulsing pain in my leg, I soon fell asleep.

POV: Sora

Kairi stirred in my arms, and I opened my eyes a tiny bit. I was immediately blinded by light. Guess that meant it was morning. Kairi opened her eyes groggily, and seeing me she smiled. "Good morning, Sora," she greeted me, blushing crimson. I grinned in reply. Neither of us made a move to get up. We spent a few minutes, enjoying the warmth and closeness we shared.

With a sigh of reluctance, I pulled myself away from Kairi and stood up. "We should probably get going," I said, though I desperately wished I could have just stayed here, embracing Kairi. She nodded, returning my sweater, which I shrugged on.

We left the dead end, turning instead along another path, different than the one we had entered from. The roses along this side were red, not white. Along the ground there were red splatters. Weird. Following the trail of red splotches, we found an arched pathway, leading out of the maze. Beside it was a nearly empty can of red paint, with a large paintbrush protruding from it.

"We found the exit!" Kairi exclaimed excitedly.

"Yeah," I agreed smiling. Aiming my Keyblade at the sky, I sent a fireball soaring over the hedges and into the air, where it eventually sputtered out.

A few moments later Riku and Kumori emerged from the hedges. They had literally forced themselves through the hedges, and were now covered in light cuts from the thorns. Riku was limping, and Kumori had an arm around his shoulder to support him.

"What happened?" Kairi asked immediately, concern washing over her features.

"His leg was hurt in Neverland," Kumori answered for him, helping him sit on the grass beyond the exit.

"Let me see it," I said, kneeling beside him. Summoning my Keyblade, I pointed it at his leg. "Cure." A pale green light washed over his leg, removing all traces of the wound, and the tiny scratches from the thorns. Riku smiled gratefully and I helped him to his feet.

"Could you teach me that spell?" Kumori asked hopefully.

"Yeah...but we'd need something for you to heal," I explained. She responded by raising her palm up for me to see. There were multiple thin lacerations on her hand, crusted over with dried blood.

Riku looked up at her, worry in his eyes. "Why didn't you say something?" he asked softly. It was kind of weird, Riku wasn't behaving quite as remotely as he usually did around her.

She bit her lip, refusing to meet his eyes. "It wasn't worth bringing up," she muttered evasively.

I broke the awkward silence that followed, showing Kumori how to cast the spell. In a few minutes, her hand was healed and she had mastered another spell.

"Look!" Kairi said, pointing. A white rabbit rushed by, mumbling under his breath. It wore a yellow collared shirt with a dark purple bow tie, along with pale blue pants and a bright red coat. In one hand, he held an oversized golden stop-watch, and in the other a tiny black umbrella. I recognized the peculiar little bunny from my last trip to Wonderland. "Let's follow him!" I suggested, maybe he would lead us to the Keyhole.

I think we were all used to weird things happening by now, because no one questioned my sanity, instead we all chased after the rabbit.

POV: Kairi

The rabbit led us up to a tiny brown door embedded in a much larger pink door. But the weird thing was, as the rabbit got closer to the door, the rabbit seemed to shrink. Either that or we grew larger. The rabbit disappeared through the wooden door, and by the time we reached the door, we were the same height as the pink door. The pink door didn't have a doorknob.

"What'll we do now?" I asked. There was no way we could fit into the tiny wooden door.

"One second...aha! There it is!" Sora exclaimed, picking up a cookie from beside the tiny door. He pulled the note off of the cookie, which read: "eat me" and broke it into four pieces.

"Shouldn't we be focusing on finding a way to the door, instead of on our stomachs?" I asked, laughing. Riku and Kumori nodded in agreement.

"Just eat it," he encouraged, handing us each a piece. Looking at the crumbly portion of cookie, I realized just how hungry I was. In seconds I was savouring the doughy, chocolaty goodness, but it was over too soon. It left behind an odd tingling sensation that spread from my stomach to my whole body. And suddenly the four of us were standing in front of the small wooden door.

"Did we shrink?" Kumori asked with wide eyes. Sora nodded, smirking. We turned our attention to the door. The knob had a face on it. And it was snoring loudly. I wondered how we hadn't noticed it before.

Sora crept close to the door, and then shouted in a loud voice, "Wake up!"

Startled and frightened, the doorknob woke up, his eyes settling on Sora. "How very rude! What do you want?" the doorknob asked grumpily, yawning.

"Could you let us through please?" Riku asked politely.

The doorknob seemed to ponder this a moment before answering. "No...I think I would like some more sleep," he replied, promptly falling back to sleep.

"Now what do we do?" I asked. If we woke him again, he would just deny us entry...again.

"His mouth _is_ a keyhole...." Kumori said, the realization dawning on her.

"Exactly," Sora confirmed, summoning his Keyblade. Riku and I followed suit. Nodding at each other, we raised our Keyblades and pointed them towards the doorknob's mouth, and a silvery light shot from the tip of each Keyblade, converging at the keyhole. The door swung open, and the doorknob cracked one eye open to look at us disdainfully. But in moments, he was snoring once more.

The four of us walked together into the doorway, and found ourselves falling. Before any of us could cry out in surprise, our descent slowed until we drifted slowly to the ground.

"That was weird," Riku muttered.

"You get used to it," Sora told him laughing.

"_This_ is weird," I said. We had found ourselves in a pink and white tiled room, with an array of colourful furniture on the walls and floor. Grandfather clocks adorned the walls too, sometimes even upside down.

"I think Kairi has a point," Kumori agreed, laughing.

Suddenly there was a squeal from up ahead. All signs of joy left us, replaced by complete and utter seriousness. "Let's go," Sora said, leading the way. Just down the hall we came face to face with the little white rabbit that I had spotted earlier, now cornered by a number of Shadows.

Riku, Sora and I charged at the Heartless, slashing at them while Kumori provided back-up with her meagre array of spells. Soon the Heartless were gone and the white rabbit was alone, gasping for breath. The poor thing looked frightened out of its wits.

"Th-thank you, but I really must be going, or I'll be late! Here, take this," the rabbit said, handing Sora his large gilded pocket watch. And without another word he scurried off through another door. The watch began to glow with a golden light, and lifting our Keyblades, we sealed the keyhole for this world.

We returned to the gummi ship without incidence, and Sora steered us off in the direction of a new world. Through the window, I could see the next world growing closer. It was a creepy looking place, mostly grey and black, with a huge yellow moon looming overhead. "Where are we?" I asked as he landed amongst many lopsided grey stones. With a start, I realized we were in a graveyard.

"Halloweentown," Sora replied grinning.


	16. Chapter 15: This is Christmas?

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts; all character credit (except for the OCs) goes to Disney, Square-Enix and Tim Burton.

**Chapter 15: This is...Christmas?**

POV: Riku

"Are you sure this is Halloweentown?" I asked Sora, looking around. We stood in a large cemetery decorated with brightly coloured lights draped around jack-o-lanterns, and cheerful ornaments hanging from the ribcages of skeletons.

"Yeah...at least, it should be..." he trailed off. I turned back to look at him. Was I seeing things? Sora was wearing a pumpkin mask on his head that cast part of his face in shadow, and two small fangs jutted out from between his lips. His clothes were completely grey-toned now, and a pair of miniature bat wings protruded from his back.

I looked over at Kumori and Kairi, who were examining themselves in surprise. Kairi's dress was black now, and she wore black and white striped stockings which led to pointed black shoes. On her head sat a dilapidated black witch hat, with a cobweb hanging from it. On her back were two skeletal wings. Her eyes were lined heavily in black, making her sky-blue eyes stand out even more against her now-paper white skin.

Kumori's ears were tapered to points, covered in black fur and were located atop her head. Her formerly pale blue dress was now dark grey and ragged. Instead of ending with fingernails, her fingers ended with wicked sharp black claws. Her pupils were mere slits, and her violet irises looked darker than usual. To complete it all, she had a long, fluffy black tail.

I looked down at myself, curious to see what I looked like. A couple of my fingers were nothing but bones, and a tear in my now-drab coloured clothing exposed a few gleaming white ribs. Running a hand along the side of my face, I found stitches, and I saw that my skin was an unhealthy grey hue.

Sora looked at me strangely. "What is it?" I asked worriedly.

"Your eyes are red," Sora laughed. Before I could reply, a tall skeleton in a Santa-suit walked up to us.

"Merry Christmas!" the skeleton said in way of greeting, handing each of us a candy cane. When he reached Sora, he paused. "Sora is that you?" he asked, wrapping him in a tight spindly-limbed embrace.

"Hey, Jack," Sora replied smiling, returning the skeleton's hug.

Pulling away from him, Jack ushered them over to a stout old man in a red suit with a trailing white beard. "Santa!" Sora shouted, nearly bowling the little man over.

Sora was hugging Santa Claus. I couldn't believe it.

"Meet Sandy Claws," the skeleton called Jack announced with a flourish of his bony hand.

Kairi, Kumori and I looked on in amazement. "And this must be your friend who told you I didn't exist," Santa addressed Sora, calmly towards walking up to me.

I nodded nervously, "I had no idea sir, honestly, I'm sorry-." I felt my grey cheeks burning in embarrasment. I couldn't imagine what kind of odd hue my face had taken on.

"It's quite alright, my boy. Not many people do anymore, you see," Santa sighed. "But that's beside the point, it's Christmas! Come and celebrate with us!"

"So you're not trying to take over Christmas again?" Sora asked Jack teasingly.

Jack grinned toothily. "No, my talent lies with terror, but Santa agreed to celebrate Christmas with us today. He just returned from delivering presents." Santa nodded in acknowledgement.

They made an odd pair: the tall skeleton in the pinstriped tuxedo, and the short little man with the flowing white beard. I imagined we must too, a vampire accompanied by a witch, a zombie and a werewolf, on Christmas of all days! They led us to the town square were a long table was placed, and all of the denizens of Halloweentown sat around the table. Everything looked cheery. The ghoulish fountain spurted eggnog, and lights were strung up everywhere, casting a festive glow. A scraggly looking tree sat off to the side of the square, decorated with skull and pumpkin ornaments. Atop the tree was a tiny winged imp, who smiled fiendishly down at the square. Below the tree dozens of presents were stacked. A mummy sat at an organ, playing a catchy holiday tune.

We sat among the various creatures of Halloweentown and enjoyed a large Christmas feast. Despite their creepy exteriors, the monsters that inhabited the town were kind, not cruel. With the friendly citizens, we ate and laughed for hours.

POV: Kumori

I smiled and shook my head at the stocky lumberjack beside me, who offered me another glass of eggnog. He didn't seem like a monster or a ghoul, so I wondered why the simple-looking woddsman was here. He smiled dully at me, and with a small shudder I noticed an axe protruding from his forehead. Now I understood.

"Listen up!" Santa called. "I have some special gifts for all of you." Standing, he went over to the tree and the pile of presents. He tossed gifts out to the people of Halloweentown, calling each out by name and presenting them with a unique present. The gifts were wrapped in all manner of Halloween coloured paper, and adorned with spiders for bows and snake-like ribbons. Many of the townspeople smiled at Santa's special tribute to the Halloween-loving monsters. Finally, the only three people without gifts were Sora, Kairi, Riku and I.

Santa called out to Riku first. "This isn't from me, it's from your friend, the King," he said quietly, handing him a tiny, glowing object. Holding it up to the light, the crystalline pendant sparkled. It was in the shape of a stylized mouse head. Riku attached it to the chain on his Keyblade. "So you don't forget that you are of the light," Santa added warmly, and turned to Kairi and Sora.

"For the two of you, well, I don't think there is anything I could give you that would make you any happier," Santa told them smiling. "But I do have one piece of advice," he said seriously.

"What's that?" Sora asked inquisitively.

"Look up," Santa said, his face breaking into a smile. The pair did so, spotting the mistletoe hung over their heads. Sora wrapped his arms around Kairi and kissed her lips gently. They broke apart, giggling and blushing brightly. Santa looked to me now.

"Kumori, what I have to give you is a very difficult thing to bestow, indeed. But your memories should start returning to you soon. It's one of the things you want the most, correct?" he asked kindly. I nodded, barely containing my excitement. I would finally know who I was! Which led me to wonder how Santa knew who I was, but I didn't dwell on it.

"Merry Christma-" Santa exclaimed to us all, but was cut off by a loud, demanding voice.

A person stood before the fountain, his face hidden by a grey cloak, embroidered with black thorns on the side. "Heartless!" he yelled, pointing to the celebrations. From behind him a swirl of inky black darkness appeared, and countless Heartless tumbled from it. Some fluttered towards the townspeople on leathery wings, and others ambled towards them on bandaged, spindly limbs.

Sora, Riku, Jack and Kairi stood defensively in front of Santa and a brunette wearing a patchwork dress. Stitches covered her grey limbs. I moved to join them, but stopped when I saw the cloaked figure storming towards me. As he passed he pushed me aside and stood before the fountain.

In a flash of darkness, a Keyblade appeared in his hand. The three prongs of the Keyblade curved like sickles, and the handle was composed of two intertwined shafts, one blue-violet and the other pitch black. From the bottom of the black handle guard hung a dull, grey metal chain, and at the end of the last link was a symbol in the shape of a hollow heart. He pointed the Keyblade at the fountain, where a golden Keyhole now pulsed.

Getting to my feet, I ran in front of the fountain, my arms stretched wide as if I could stop him. "You can't!" I cried out angrily. This person must be the culprit, the one who was unlocking the doors to the worlds' hearts. I couldn't let him expose the heart of this world; that was our purpose here, to stop the hooded stranger.

"Stand aside!" he said roughly, his indigo eyes flashing in the depths of the hood. Raising his Keyblade, he brought it crashing down towards my head. I flung my hands in front of myself, bracing myself for the blow. But it never came. A silver and blue Keyblade materialized in my clawed hand, warding off the attack.

My attacker took a step back. "Kumori?" he whispered disbelievingly, stepping backwards into darkness. The few remaining Heartless disappeared along with him.

-~-x-~-

Cliffhanger :O

Please review, and tell me what you think so far =]

Happy holidays everyone! =D


	17. Chapter 16: King of the Pride

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts; all character credit (except for the OCs) goes to Disney, Square-Enix and Tim Burton.

~And now, a long-overdue look at what the villains are up to!~

Chapter 16: King of the Pride

POV: ??????

"You can't control the Heartless now. They follow the stronger hearts, the ones who can better control the darkness," I explained, calmly looking into the witch's yellow eyes. The raven perched on her shoulder ruffled its feathers in irritation, fixing a beady yellow eye on me. The witch's gaze was equally cold. But if she was trying to intimidate me, she would have to try harder.

"What makes you think you're stronger than Maleficent here? She's a powerful sorceress!" the chubby dog-creature that accompanied her demanded. I didn't even glance at him.

"Be quiet, fool," the witch barked, her eyes never once leaving mine. "So what are you proposing? There must be some reason you called us here," she added.

I smirked; she was finally catching on. "My partner and I thought it would benefit all of us if we worked together. Another ally would be most welcome, as the Keyblade bearers are proving to be quite a nuisance. Besides, we've been closer to Kingdom Hearts itself than you ever have. We're even willing to share it, should you join us."

"If you obtain it?" she muttered with an arched eyebrow.

"When we obtain it," I corrected her. "So, do we have a deal?"

"Indeed, it seems like a fair bargain. I have a score to settle with that meddling wielder of the Keyblade, Sora," the witch replied with a grimace.

"Valens!" a familiar voice shouted as he emerged from a corridor of darkness.

"Yes?" I asked him.

"I think I found her!" he told me. From beneath the shadow cast by his hood, I could see him smile.

"Finally," I said, feeling a smile creep across my face .

POV: Sora

Slashing at the last gargoyle Heartless, I saw Riku and Kairi take on a trio of Wight Nights. Suddenly, the remaining Heartless retreated into the shadows and faded away completely. Looking across the plaza, Kumori fell to her knees with a dumbstruck expression on her face.

In her hand was a metallic blue-handled Keyblade, with silver handle guards. The blade ended with three prongs that were decorated in such a way, that the space between them resembled a heart. The prongs were the same silvery metal as the handle guards. Strangely enough, it didn't seem to have a keychain attached to it.

She let it clatter to the cobblestoned ground, staring at the empty spot where the cloaked figure had stood. We walked over to her, and Kairi reached out a tentative hand to her shoulder. "Are you okay, Kumori?" she asked, and Kumori turned her wide eyes to us.

"Was he the one behind unlocking the hearts of the worlds?" I asked. She nodded numbly.

"He knew me," she murmured.

"From before you came to the Islands," Riku said. It was more of a statement than a question. She nodded.

"Maybe you'll remember something soon, something to help explain how you know the hooded man," Kairi told her hopefully.

"And why you have a Keyblade," I added, in case any of us had forgotten. Kumori stood up, scratching a furry ear absently. "Ready to leave?" I asked quietly.

The people of Halloweentown had already begun repair most of the damage done by the Heartless invasion, so there was no need for us to stay. She nodded her head, and the three of us sealed the keyhole. I didn't ask Kumori to help, simply because that she already had a lot to handle. Bidding farewell to Jack, Sally and Santa, with promises to visit for their respective holidays, we returned to the gummi ship.

The flight to the next world was silent; everyone was caught up in their own thoughts and worries. I was relieved when the next world came into view. Landing the gummi ship in new world, the four of us stepped out onto the sunny savannah. And we were suddenly engulfed in a shimmering white light.

When the light faded, I looked down and saw the maroon paws of my lion guise. Once more our appearances had changed to suit the world we were visiting. Riku was in the form of a silvery snow leopard, and Kairi was a red and beige lion. Kumori was a sullen, yellow-eyed panther. Looking at each other, we burst out laughing. Everyone but Kumori that is; she remained listless beside us.

With my heightened senses, I could hear arguing coming from a rock nearby. I motioned to my friends to follow me to the source of the commotion. Behind the rock were a plump warthog who was quarrelling with a tiny meerkat.

"Slimy!" the stout warthog shouted.

"Crunchy!" the petite meerkat retorted.

"Less filling!" the warthog exclaimed in response.

"Tastes good!" the meerkat objected loudly.

"Timon, Pumba!" I yelled, interrupting their little argument. I ran over to them and pounced playfully.

"Sora!" Pumba said by way of greeting, beaming at me.

"Just in time, buddy! Which tastes better: crunchy bugs or slimy bugs?" Timon butted in immediately.

"Gross," I laughed. Kairi, Riku and Kumori, looked on with interest.

"Well, what do you think, Kiara?" Pumba asked. The question was met with silence.

"Kiara?" Timon called, looking around in vain.

"Who's Kiara?" I asked them.

"Simba's daughter!" Pumba told me. Simba had a daughter? So much had changed…Just as in Neverland, it seemed more time had passed than I had previously thought.

"She's gone!" Timon fretted, "Simba is going to kill us for this!"

"Don't worry, we'll help you find her!" Kairi said, before I had the chance to make the same offer. I smiled to myself.

"Who are these three?" Pumba asked, eyeing them wearily. Probably afraid that they would try to make a meal out of him.

"My friends, Kairi, Riku and Kumori," I replied, nodding to each of the felines in turn. "This is Timon and Pumba," I told them.

"Nice to meet you, but we really should be looking for Kiara," Timon said impatiently.

"Look, pawprints," Riku informed us, standing in front of a dirt path leading away from the rock. Sure enough, small pawprints marked the soil. Timon gulped nervously, and Pumba looked around uneasily.

"What's wrong?" Kairi asked them. A moment ago they were so eager to find Kiara, what would make them hesitate like this?

"That way leads to the Outlands," Pumba answered with a shudder.

"What are the Outlands?" I asked worriedly.

"It's where Simba banished Scar's followers after he became king," Timon explained. No wonder they were afraid, Scar wasn't the friendliest lion I'd ever met, and I couldn't imagine his followers being much better.

"What should we do then?" Riku asked, glancing from the warthog, to the meerkat and back again.

"We'll get Simba, he'll know what to do," Timon replied, and climbed atop Pumba's head.

"But Timon, won't Simba be angry that we lost Kiara?" Pumba asked sensibly.

"He'll be angrier if we don't do something," Timon said in return. Without another word, Timon and Pumba raced off towards the rocky landmark that was Pride Rock, followed closely by four young cubs.

POV: Kairi

We arrived at a strangely shaped rock formation that towered over the savannah. The meerkat and warthog, now known as Timon and Pumba, lost no time in reaching the cavern midway up the rock. In moments, two regal lions appeared. One was a male lion with a bright red mane and an aura of power about him. Judging by his worried expression, I thought that he must be Simba, the missing cub's father. The lioness accompanying him seemed equally upset, the cub's mother, perhaps? The two padded down the rock quickly towards us and Timon and Pumba followed, along with a small blue bird. A group of lionesses gathered around us.

"Simba!" Sora shouted, running up to the larger lion. Simba smiled at him briefly, and turned to address the lionesses.

"Kiara has run off to the Outlands, alone. We must retrieve her before something happens to her!" he announced. The lionesses nodded in agreement, and Simba ran off in the direction of where we had arrived. Some of the lionesses followed, while others remained pacing around the rock.

"Let's follow them!" Sora said. "They might need our help if something goes wrong."

"Alright," I replied. Riku nodded. I looked at Kumori.

"Yeah," she answered, after a moment. At least, she wasn't as shell-shocked as she'd been earlier. Maybe she was coming to terms with the dark stranger's involvement in her hazy past.

Together we caught up to Simba and his entourage of lionesses. We passed the rock where we had found Timon and Pumba, entering a dismal grey-green meadow. The further we got from the towering rock, the more barren and grey the landscape became. We kept going until we reached a small clearing in the grass, where two lion cubs were cowering.

Simba charged at the Heartless surrounding them without a moment's hesitation. Sora quickly followed, fiercely slashing at the Heartless with the Keyblade that he held...in his mouth? If the circumstances were different, I probably would have left at how absurd he looked. Now, I just copied his stance, and held my Keyblade clenched in my sharp teeth. Riku had already done the same. After a moment's hesitation, Kumori summoned her Keyblade too.

With the five of us fighting, the Heartless didn't stand a chance. Riku slashed at the last shamanic heartless, and we turned our attention to the lion cubs. A scrawny, grey-brown lioness stepped out from the grass and snarled at Simba. Simba roared in return, stepping closer to his daughter and the mysterious brown lion cub.

"Zira," Simba growled menacingly.

"Simba?" the lioness said with a smile. In response, the lionesses that accompanied us fanned out around Simba defensively.

"Now that we all know each other, get out of our Pridelands!" Timon shouted angrily.

"You and your young cub, get out," Simba said, his voice burning with cold fury.

"Oh? Haven't you met my son, Kovu? He was hand chosen by Scar, to follow in his pawprints, and become the King," she told him forcefully. Simba growled at the young cub.

"Simba!" Sora shouted; he seemed deeply upset by his treatment of the innocent cub.

"Stay out of this!" Simba yelled. "And you, get out! We're finished here." Turning away, Simba picked up his cub by the scruff of her neck.

"Oh no, Simba. We've barely begun..." she muttered darkly, roughly grabbing her own cub. Simba continued walking, ignoring her. We all followed silently.

-~x~-

So, what do you think? In this chapter, I tried to copy the style in which Disney movies are incorporated into the Kingdom Hearts storyline. Hope I didn't fail completely . I shortened some parts from the movie, trying to keep with the style of the series.

Anyways, R&R please, and thanks for reading!


	18. Chapter 17: Change

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts; all character credit (except for the OCs) goes to Disney and Square-Enix.

Chapter 17: Change

POV: Sora

Reaching Pride Rock, Simba gently lowered his cub to the ground and turned to us. "You can stay in Rafiki's hollow tonight," he told us. I was glad that the coldness had left his voice, but I was still upset.

"But, Simba, why-" I began to ask. Why had he acted so cold, to an innocent lion cub, even though he was to be Scar's successor.

"That's enough, Sora," Simba said wearily, walking off with Kiara. Nala turned her sympathetic gaze to me.

"It's because he's a father, Sora. He feels very protective towards Kiara, and he sees Kovu as a threat," the lioness explained softly.

"But he's just a cub!" I argued.

"Parenthood changes you. You'll understand when you have children of your own," she replied gently. I sighed and dropped the subject.

We parted ways with lionesses; they went to their den atop Pride Rock, while we made our way towards the cave beside it. When we entered, I was surprised we weren't greeted by the eccentric old baboon, Rafiki. In fact, he was nowhere within the little cavern.

Going over to a corner of the cave, I curled up. The ground was cold, despite the thick fur that now coated me. Kairi was quick to curl up next to me. She turned her cerulean eyes to me. "Sora, are you going to be alright?"

In the periphery of my vision, I saw Kumori walk over to another corner of the room, lying down with her back to us. Riku rested in front of the cave wall decorated with drawings of lions. To Kairi, I nodded. "It's just, Simba's changed so much," I murmured.

"Everyone changes, Sora, it's inevitable. We can't stop change, no matter how much we want to," she replied sagely.

"I know, it just takes some getting used to, that's all," I said quietly.

Kairi nuzzled closer to me. "Just don't worry, okay?" she asked, her eyelids drooping with fatigue. In a moment, Kairi had fallen asleep. I appreciated her warm, comforting presence and her wise words. Sighing in content, I let sleep claim me as well.

POV: Riku

I listened to Sora and Kairi's conversation, feeling more and more alone. The loneliness stabbed through my chest with each word they spoke. Though the three of us were still friends, the bonds we shared would never be the same as they had been two years ago. I had to face that fact. As Kairi had so aptly put it, everyone changes. And we were not excluded from this truth.

Perhaps it was our differences that had caused us to drift apart. Sora was the champion of the light, saviour of the worlds. Kairi was a Princess of Heart, one of seven people with completely pure hearts. And I fell victim to the temptation of darkness; a coward forever tainted by shadows. Despite having defeated Ansem, I knew that a shadow of him remained, lurking in my heart. I could never be like them.

I sighed; these thoughts always left me feeling depressed and out of place. I rolled over on my side, closing my eyes. I could hear the peaceful breathing of my friends...and something else. I opened my eyes to see Kumori huddled in a corner of the hollow. Her efforts to mask her tears were in vain; my feline ears could detect the faintest sound now.

"Kumori?" I whispered. She flinched at the sound of her name, but continued to weep quietly. I rose to my feet, and walked over to her. "Are you alright?" I asked softly, placing a paw on her shoulder. She winced but instead of pulling away, she looked up at me with her bloodshot eyes. "What's wrong?" I persisted, careful to keep my voice low.

She looked away. "It's not important," she muttered.

"If that was true, you wouldn't be crying," I pointed out. "You can tell me, Kumori," I added in a more gentle tone.

"I'm afraid," she said finally. "Of my past."

POV: Kumori

"What that hooded stranger said is still bothering you, huh?" Riku asked. I nodded, batting my paws at the corners of my eyes to dry the lingering tears.

"Don't let it get to you. Whoever you were before isn't that important. It's who you are now that counts," Riku said with a faint smile. I smiled too. Having him here, talking to me was comforting. Too often I felt like I was intruding on the three of them, an outsider looking in.

"You're right," I conceded. "I'm sorry if I woke you up," I apologized, feeling guilty for troubling him.

"You didn't. Are you going to be alright?" he asked gently, gazing at me in concern with his bright turquoise eyes.

"Yeah, thanks, Riku," I said. I did feel a lot better. He was right; I couldn't let my past interfere with the present. He smiled again, and walked back to his place in the middle of the cave. Soon I fell asleep, and began to dream.

_I stood in a dark place, with crystalline snow underfoot. Icy stalagmites rose from the ground around a white door. The door was an intimidating sight, it towered over us. It was decorated with golden handles and stained glass windows._

_A young boy of about 16 stood in front of me, a keyblade held loosely in his hand. It had a red shaft ending with three deadly-looking prongs. The prongs were red and black, in the shape of extremely sharp-pointed diamonds. The blade's handle guard was obsidian, and looked as jagged as the prongs themselves. _

_The hood of his grey cloak, decorated with a thorn motif, was pulled down and I could see his face. Dark scarlet hair framed his angular face. His maroon eyes were focused on me. Behind her, my dream-self could sense another presence. _

"_Are you ready?" the presence asked seriously._

_My dream-self nodded. "Let's go."_

_With synchronized movement, we raised our keyblades to the white door. Three beams of silvery-white light arced through the darkness towards the door._

-~x~-

Special thanks to TehAverageWrites, Maddiejane94, Winged Scythe, DarkRandomWriter, and all of the readers! ^-^


	19. Chapter 18: Recruitment

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts; all character credit (except for the OCs) goes to Disney and Square-Enix.

Chapter 18: Recruitment

POV: Sora

A sharp flare of pain in my forehead startled me awake. Rafiki stood over me, holding his staff that had no doubt done the damage to my head.

"Wake up! Wake up!" the baboon crowed, though I noticed he didn't attack any of my friends with his cursed stick. Slowly they all awoke from their slumber. Why was I the only one suffering through Rafiki's special treatment?

"What is it?" Riku muttered groggily, still half-asleep.

"You follow old Rafiki! He knows the way!" the baboon cried, ambling out of the hollow.

"The way to where?" Kairi asked the empty air, looking puzzled and tired.

"Now that we're awake, we might as well find out," I sighed, getting to my feet…err…paws. My four friends nodded in agreement, and together we left the cave.

Upon leaving the hollow, we spotted Rafiki wandering off towards the jungle on the other side of the savannah, where many tall trees could be seen. The baboon turned and gestured impatiently towards us, before continuing on his way. I wondered what was so important.

He only halted when he reached the largest tree in the forest. The gnarled Baobab tree reached high up into the sky, and dark coloured fruit were nestled in its highest branches. Its trunk was extremely wide, but perhaps the tree only looked this large because of my reduced height.

Rafiki strolled over to the tree and pointed to a place on the trunk that wasn't obscured by the tree's massive roots. "Look!" he encouraged us.

We walked closer and I noticed something near the bottom roots. There were crude drawings of a young lion and lioness on the bark there. "You wanted us to see this?" I asked, feeling more than a little confused.

"No, look harder," the wise– or crazy, I couldn't decide which–baboon told me.

With a shrug, I did as he suggested, or at least tried to. How are you supposed to look harder? I squinted at the drawing, trying to figure out what exactly Rafiki wanted me to see, when I finally noticed it. Between the two felines was a drawing of a keyhole. But I could swear that the drawing hadn't been there before…

"What is it?" Kairi asked, looking over my shoulder.

"Rafiki found the keyhole," I said in a slightly surprised voice. The baboon nodded in acknowledgement. The four of us summoned our keyblades, but we didn't have the chance to seal the keyhole. From under the roots of the tree a pool of darkness appeared, and a large Heartless slithered out.

A huge hooded cobra with shining yellow eyes was in front of us. It moved its lithe brown body into a vertical position, exposing its cream-coloured underbelly. The snake hissed at us, baring its fangs which no doubt dripped with some sort of lethal venom. I backed away, and we all raised our keyblades defensively.

"Aim for the stomach!" someone shouted, running past me. It was Kumori, slashing at the huge cobra. I smiled; she was finally showing a little enthusiasm. Raising my keyblade, I rushed at the Heartless. Kairi and Riku exchanged brief glances before joining us in our assault on the snake.

We attacked it from all sides relentlessly, being careful to dodge when it tried to spit its poison at us. The Heartless tried to bite me but caught Kairi instead. She screamed when its fangs pierced her arm, but managed to remain conscious.

"Kairi!" I shouted, frantically hoping she would be alright.

"I've got it, keep fighting," Kumori said, darting past me with Kairi in tow. I heard her mutter "Cure" before I turned back to the battle at hand.

By this time the Heartless had been greatly weakened, it moved sluggishly and its attacks were much more desperate. It lunged at Riku, who parried the blow with his keyblade, giving me a chance to strike the final blow at the Heartless's exposed stomach. The defeated cobra Heartless faded back into darkness.

Rafiki clapped from his safe haven, high in the branches of the tree. He hopped down to the ground effortlessly and tapped the keyhole drawing with his staff. "It is time," he said sagely. Raising my keyblade, I looked over at Riku, who lifted his keyblade towards the keyhole. Turning, I saw Kumori and a completely-recovered Kairi do the same.

Sealing the keyhole, I turned back to Rafiki. "You knew this would happen all along, didn't you?" I asked lightly.

The monkey smiled evasively before he began his trek back to Pride Rock. I sighed wearily. "Is everyone alright?" I asked. Kumori and Riku nodded. "Kairi?"

"Yeah, I'm alright now," she reassured me smiling. "On to the next world then?"

I nodded. The day had just begun, but I was exhausted already.

We said goodbye to Simba and his pride, and of course Timon, Pumba and Rafiki. Then we boarded the gummi ship, and adjusted ourselves to our old forms.

POV: Riku

"So what was with the enthusiasm, back when we were fighting the snake Heartless? You don't seem as upset as you did when we first arrived in the Pridelands," Sora noted, looking away from the controls for a moment to glance at Kumori.

"I just decided to take a friend's advice," she replied, smiling slightly.

"What was the advice?" Kairi prodded.

"To not let my past bother me, because it's not really as important as the present," she answered, smiling briefly at me. I smiled in return, but no one seemed to have noticed.

"Good advice," Sora remarked, his eyes now focused on the next world, which was quickly approaching.

In a moment, the gummi ship was landed in the water, an ocean by the looks of it. Sora stepped onto the dock, and tied the gummi ship to one of the posts with a length of rope that was conveniently coiled on the worn wooden planks. Stepping outside, I was relieved when I wasn't engulfed in light, which I'd now come to see as a warning that we were about to turn into something strange.

"Where are we?" Kairi asked, looking around. I took a moment to do the same.

It was night here, but we had left the Pridelands in the early afternoon. A meagrely lit portside town stretched out before us. The sounds of drunken laughter and gun shots could be heard, along with the combined music of an accordionist, a fiddler and a man strumming a guitar. The denizens of the town were dressed in all manner of Victorian clothing; women in long lacy dresses and men in long buttoned coats and trousers. Despite their clothing, the townspeople looked rough and ready for a brawl.

Sora took a minute to think over Kairi's question. "I think we're in Port Royal, but I'm not sure," he admitted. "This place seems...different, though."

"We might as well ask someone, then," Kumori suggested sensibly.

Deciding to make myself useful, I walked over to a young woman in a golden-hued gown, with curly blonde ringlets just reaching her shoulders. I tapped her shoulder to get her attention. She turned her kohl-rimmed eyes to me.

"Excuse me, is this Port Royal?" I asked politely. The woman looked at me as if I was insane. "We're looking for..." I trailed off, looking to Sora to complete the question.

"Jack Sparrow," Sora supplied helpfully.

At first the woman looked upset, like she was considering slapping me, but thankfully her anger dissipated before she could act on it. "He's in there," she muttered darkly, gesturing to a bar. She sauntered off, closely followed by a scarlet-clad woman that I hadn't noticed before.

A sign on the building that she had mentioned was proclaimed the "Faithful Bride", accompanied by an image depicting a cheery woman in a wedding dress, clasping a bouquet of flowers in her cuffed hands. This place also seemed to be the source of most of the commotion around here.

Walking inside, we saw a large room lit by candles and a crackling fire in the hearth. A table was set up in front of said fireplace, where a balding man sat in front of a line of people. Drunks milled about laughing and shouting incoherently, but Sora ignored them and walked quickly over to the man at the table.

"Gibbs!" he exclaimed on reaching the seated man. "Where's Jack?" he asked, getting straight to the point.

He pointed at a pirate staring intently at the black compass in his hands. The man, called Gibbs, began interviewing the next person in line.

"Jack!" Sora said in lieu of greeting. The distracted pirate looked up, and his dark eyes lit up.

"Zola!" Jack shouted, getting to his feet. "Welcome aboard, mate!"

~-x-~

Thanks to all of the readers! Over 500 hits! ^-^


	20. Chapter 19: A NIght on the Black Pearl

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts; all character credit (except for the OCs) goes to Disney and Square-Enix.

Note: Sorry that it took me a while to update; the end of winter break and all :P

Chapter 19: A Night on the Black Pearl

POV: Kairi

"Welcome aboard?" Sora asked with a puzzled expression.

"Aye, to the crew," Jack told him. "Are you friends here to join too?"

"Actually, we didn't exactly–" he began to reply, but a loud shout silenced him.

The cause of the noise was a man wearing a bedraggled coat that might have looked regal in better days and a filthy white-haired wig askew on his head, which failed to hide wisps of dark brown hair. Atop his head was a worn tri-corn hat and he held a bottle of rum in his hand. He was shouting in front of Gibbs, though the tirade didn't seem to be aimed at the poor man. In his rage the other man flipped the table over, sending Gibbs tumbling backwards.

Jack discreetly pulled a branch from a nearby potted plant in front of his face, in the hopes of hiding himself from the angry man.

"So am I worthy to serve under Captain Jack Sparrow?" the man asked the crowd, who had grown quieter since his outburst.

By this time Jack had begun creeping across the room, keeping the leafy branch between him and the furious would-be crewmate. Despite Jack's attempts to avoid detection, he was noticed.

"Or should I just kill you now?" the man asked in a calmer voice, aiming his gun at Jack's head.

Jack moved the plant away from his face, and moved to the other side of a nearby pillar. The man's gun followed his path.

"You're hired," Jack said with a smile.

"Sorry, old habits and all that," the man replied in a mock apologetic voice, not lowering his gun. A couple of men rushed at him just as he was about to pull the trigger, and the bullet struck the chandelier and ricocheted to shatter someone's bottle of rum. A brawl ensued, blows were traded and chaos reigned.

"Time to go!" Jack exclaimed, heading for the exit.

"Aye!" Gibbs agreed, getting to his feet and following Jack. Not wanting to be caught in the madness here, the four of us trailed after them. After all, we had apparently been enlisted in Jack's crew. I wondered what had happened to the last crew.

Outside of the bar, we returned to the docks. Sora, Riku, Kumori and I, along with the rest of the crew boarded the ship. Jack and Gibbs, however, hesitated. The cause was a man with shaggy blonde hair and a tri-corn hat pulled low over his eyes approaching the captain.

"Jack?" Sora asked, pausing at the top of the gangplank. I stopped to wait for him, but Riku and Kumori didn't seem to notice and walked on deck.

"Go on ahead, this'll only take a minute," Jack assured him keeping his eyes on the unfamiliar man. Behind him, I spotted the strange man from earlier, hunched over a pile of crates and urns, emptying the contents of his stomach into the ocean.

Sora eyed him wearily. "Are you sure?" he persisted. Jack nodded and waved us on our way. Sora and I turned and I noticed Kumori and Riku chatting and leaning over the railing at the other side of the ship. I smiled to myself and followed Sora below deck.

Was it possible that Riku was taking an interest in her? Secretly, I sort of hoped so. He'd been alone with no one but the darkness and its denizens, and of course the King, for so long; maybe falling in love would be good for him. And Kumori had no one but us right now, at least until her memories returned, so it was possible she was just as lonely. I guess I'd just have to wait and see.

The rafters in the hold of the ship held up countless grey hammocks. I sat down on one, feeling a bit tired. Was it possible to get gummi-ship-lag? Sora sat down beside me and sighed, wrapping an arm around my shoulder. I leaned against his shoulder, I closed my eyes. We sat there in silence for a moment, enjoying our time alone with each other. These moments seemed so rare, since we always had our friends with us.

I didn't open my eyes until Sora spoke. "I love you, Kairi," Sora murmured, brushing a strand of scarlet hair out of my eyes. I smiled warmly, savouring the heart melting feeling his ocean-blue eyes inspired.

"I love you too, Sora," I said quietly, my heart pounding in my chest. Our blue eyes remained locked together. Slowly, our faces moved closer, until our faces were inches apart and I could feel his light, warm breath on my face. Sora reached out with a sure hand and tilted my face upward, ever so slightly. And our lips collided.

The kiss was light and tender, but fleeting. We pulled apart for a moment, gazing at each other. After a second, our lips met again. Sora wrapped his arms around me, pulling me closer to him and deepening the kiss. I lost myself in the warm ecstasy of my emotions. It was pure bliss.

A cough interrupted us. For a second time, we broke apart, this time blushing. "Sorry," Kumori said immediately when she saw us, her own cheeks turning pink in embarrassment. Riku didn't seem fazed, in fact I saw him try to hide a smirk behind his hand. I had a feeling he was the person who had "coughed."

"It's alright," I assured her, smiling a little. Truth be told, I had been running out of breath. But by no means did that mean I had wanted the kiss to end.

"Might as well get some sleep," Sora sighed, standing up and pressing his lips lightly to the top of my head. I felt a blush rise on my cheeks again. How fair was it, that one person could turn my insides to mush? He grinned and reclined on a hammock beside mine. With murmured 'goodnights" and thoughts of Sora on my mind, I fell asleep.

POV: Kumori

Exhausted, I laid down in a hammock across from Kairi's. A feeling of peace had overcome me since my conversation with Riku. I thought back to those first few moments on the ship...

_Earlier..._

I walked over to the side of the ship, not minding that Riku had tagged along. I would probably enjoy his company. Gazing out at the dark ocean, with the moon overhead, I sighed and leaned on the railing. Riku and I rested there for a moment in silence, looking out on the calm midnight waters. Surprisingly, I wasn't afraid of the sea, though my first memory was of drowning. I actually found it quite serene.

"It's so calm," I remarked, quietly, keeping my eyes on the moonlit horizon. After a moment of quiet, Riku replied, though my original intention hadn't been to start a conversation.

"Yeah. Sometimes, on the Islands, when I couldn't sleep, I would walk along the beach or just sit and watch the waves. It always relaxed me," he admitted, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. He paused before he continued. "That's how I found you, that night when you came to the Islands."

I nodded. "Couldn't sleep?" The silence stretched on for a while before he answered.

"A nightmare, actually," he murmured. "It was weird," he went on, "it was about drowning."

"Maybe it's just because you live on an Island, drowning seems like a sensible fear," I reasoned.

He shook his head. "I was never afraid of drowning before...but maybe you're right," he conceded. We continued staring out at the waters in silence. It wasn't an awkward silence, not at all, more like a profound quiet; there was an unspoken respect between us, an understanding.

"Thanks, Riku," I said suddenly.

For the first time since we had walked over here, he turned his aqua eyes to me. Why did that make my pulse race? "For what?" he asked.

For saving me from drowning. For accepting me. For being there for me. For convincing me to live in the present. But instead of saying those things I smiled and replied simply. "Everything."

"You're welcome," he told me, smiling. I looked away, feeling flustered for no reason at all. The crew was scuttling about, getting the ship ready to sail. We would probably only be in the way if we stayed above deck. "Let's go," Riku suggested, leading the way down to the hold of the ship, where Kairi and Sora had disappeared a while ago.

_Now..._

The calm quiet sound of my friends' breathing, on top of the fatigue from the events of today, sent me spiralling into my dreams.

_I stood in a pale blue-wallpapered room, feeling warm and secure. Someone opened the plain white door, and moved forward to embrace me. A warm tingly feeling filled my whole body._

"_I missed you," my dream-self whispered fiercely, hugging him tightly._

"_I know and I'm sorry. Work at the lab's been taking up most of my time," the dark-haired teen explained, brushing some of my raven hair out of my eyes with a smile. _

"_The experiments aren't dangerous are they?" I asked, cuddling closer to his chest._

"_Don't worry, we're careful," he assured me, stroking my hair with gentle fingers._

_Tilting my face to his, our lips met softly. The warm feeling from before had become a burning desire in my chest. We pulled apart after a few minutes. _

"_I have to go," he said bitterly, letting go of my arms._

"_But you just came! Don't go," my dream-self pleaded, clinging to him._

"_I have to," he replied grimly, but not pushing me away. "I love you," he murmured, pressing his lips against mine again. He pulled away all too soon, and walked back to the door._

"_I love you, too," I told him, and with a brief smile he left._

_I sank to the floor, dejected and alone. And scared._

-~x~-

Special thanks to NinjaSheik


	21. Chapter 20: Buried Treasure

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts; all character credit (except for the OCs) goes to Disney and Square-Enix.

Note to the readers: Words can't express how unbelievably sorry I am! I will try to write more frequently, so that there isn't a huge wait like that again. Sorry again ~Syke

Chapter 20: Buried Treasure

POV: Riku

_The deep blue waters surged around me. I saw a girl panicking in the distance, her violet eyes filled with fear as waves crashing over her head. "Kumori!" I tried to shout, but a wave overtook me and seawater filled my lungs. I tore myself from the freezing embrace of the waves and broke the surface. I breathed in a lungful of cold sea air, and looked around. I spotted Kumori struggling against the waves, our eyes met for a moment, before a wave forced her under the water._

_I dove beneath the raging waves, exposing my eyes to the stinging waters. I twisted around, trying to spot her in the murky water. Where was she? I finally caught a glimpse of her, sinking down towards the black abyss where the seabed should have been. All that was there was an endless darkness and Kumori was falling into it. _

_She caught my eyes again, her purple eyes silently pleading as she drifted closer to the black void. I plunged further beneath the water, as her feet were swallowed by the dark void. She stretched her hand out to me, and I reached out with my hand to take hold of hers. I tried to pull her from the darkness, but she was simply pulled deeper into it. Now the fathomless darkness was up to her waist._

_I began to feel light-headed from the lack of oxygen. A current knocked me backwards, and her cool fingers slipped out of my grasp. Wide-eyed she tried to grasp my hand again. I reached for her desperately, but clutched nothing but seawater. The last thing I saw of her before she sank into the darkness was her deep lilac eyes, filled with fear._

_I gazed numbly at the darkness below me, wishing that it would swallow me up, destroy me, so long as this painful sensation in my chest would disappear. I wanted to disappear. I didn't save her. That thought tore a hole through my heart. I should have tried harder, but now it was too late. Kumori was dead. And it was my fault. _

_My oxygen-starved body remained floating above the black void as my lungs ached for air. The periphery of my vision began to darken and blur, and finally with an explosion of pain in my chest, the darkness stole over me._

I sat up abruptly, tumbling out of my hammock. Ouch. I got to my feet groggily and glanced over at Kumori reflexively. She lay curled up in her hammock, sleeping peacefully. An intense feeling of relief washed over me, and the anxiety that was clenched in my chest dissipated. What was wrong with me? It had only been a dream.

But I wondered why Kumori had appeared in my dream. After a moment, I shrugged it off. After all, spending days on end with the same people was bound to affect my dreaming patterns, right? A nagging voice in my head pointed out that I had known Sora and Kairi much longer than Kumori, yet neither of them had been in my dream. Ignoring it, I tried unsuccessfully to fall asleep again.

POV: Sora

"Land ho! Wake up ya lubbers!" Gibbs shouted, clanging an old bell, which effectively woke me from my peaceful slumber. Around me, my friends and fellow crewmembers stirred. The crew members that had been sleeping rolled out of their hammocks and shuffled back on deck.

Kairi, Riku and Kumori disentangled themselves from their hammocks, and doing the same I got to my feet. The four of us looked at each other and exchanged smiles. With our wrinkled and now slightly-worn clothing, and not to mention our sleep-ruffled hair, we almost looked the part of a pirate crew.

Filing one by one up the creaky wooden stairs, we went above deck. Jack was lost in conversation with Gibbs and the pirate from last night...wait was that Elizabeth? Before I could pursue that thought, Jack noticed us and made his way towards us. "Where are we?" I asked, looking out over the waters.

We were anchored in deep turquoise waters just offshore of a pristine white beach. Tropical trees and sparse patches of green grass dotted the sandy island, leading to a dense jungle in the centre of the island. I felt a twinge of homesickness. "This is Isla Cruces," Jack told us.

"I don't mean to sound rude, but why are we here?" Kairi asked.

"Eh...you're Zola's friend, Carrie was it?" Jack began. Kairi opened her mouth to protest, but gave up as Jack continued. "To put it bluntly, love, there's a certain chest, of unknown size and origin, which is of great value to me. I have reason to believe that it is here, on Isla Cruces, and I've come here to acquire it, savvy?" Jack explained.

"Ready to go ashore, Captain?" Gibbs called over, as he finished preparing rowboats by the side of the ship.

"Aye! Come on then, Zola, Carrie...er...you two," Jack replied, gesturing at Riku and Kumori.

Jack turned away just as someone behind us cleared their throat. "Aren't you forgetting someone?" the person said, and slowly Jack turned to face the person. It was the drunken man from the bar, last night.

"Ah, well Zola, associates, this would be the former Commodore Norrington. Over there," Jack said, pointing to a woman boarding a rowboat, "is the governor of Port Royal's daughter, Elizabeth Swann." Without another word, he hurried over to the rowboats. He seemed agitated, and carried with him a jar that seemed to contain nothing but sand.

The five us, including Norrington, followed him, and boarded the rowboats. Jack, Norrington, Elizabeth and two men who were introduced as Ragetti and Pintel, manned one rowboat; while Kairi, Kumori, Riku and I occupied another. In a few moments we had gotten into the rhythm of paddling, and were navigating our way on the choppy waters towards shore.

Ahead of us, Ragetti and Pintel were arguing about something cracking. A snatch of conversation drifted back to us on the wind. "It's a mythological creature, I'll calls it what I wants!" Ragetti exclaimed. What were they talking about? I arched an eyebrow and glanced at my friends. Riku and Kairi looked as confused as I felt.

Kumori was lost in thought, gazing at the water. "What's wrong?" Kairi asked, turning her concerned eyes to Kumori.

She looked up and shook her head, "Nothing...but I've been having these weird dreams..." I expected her to go on, but the only sound was the waves slapping against the side of the boat. Kairi didn't pursue the topic.

Finally we made it ashore, and Jack addressed us after removing three shovels from the bottom of his boat. "Ragetti, Pintel and...erm...you two: guard the boats, mind the tide and don't touch my dirt. Zola, Carrie, follow me," he muttered, tossing a shovel to me.

Kairi gave me a look, as if to ask 'should we really be following this guy on a treasure hunt?'

I shrugged in reply to her unvoiced question, "Captain's orders." Without argument, we wandered after Jack, Elizabeth and Norrington.

POV: Kairi

The five of us trudged through ankle deep water for a few minutes before even reaching shore. Elizabeth led our motley group, holding Jack's broken compass in front of her. I couldn't help but wonder how she hoped to find anything with a compass that didn't even point north. We kept walking on until she finally, lost her patience and sat down on the sandy beach, dropping the compass beside her.

"This doesn't work!" Elizabeth cried out in frustration, crossing her arms in front of herself, not unlike a pouting child. "And it certainly doesn't show you what you want most."

Jack walked over and examined the disregarded compass curiously. "Yes it does. You're sitting on it!" he exclaimed.

Elizabeth looked at him with bewilderment. "Beg your pardon?"

"Move," he ordered, shooing her away from the spot. Norrington broke the sandy soil with his shovel. "Come on then!" Jack said, gesturing wildly to Sora. He began to dig alongside Norrington, tossing shovelful after shovelful of sand over his back and letting it fall into a heap on the beach. I sat on the sand, looking on with Elizabeth and Jack.

When the hole was a few feet deep, Norrington's shovel struck something hard. The dull thud signified the end of the dig. Sora sat down on the ground beside me, panting. Jack, Elizabeth and Norrington gathered around the hole. Captain Sparrow fell to his knees and dusted away the last layer of sand with eager hands. From beneath the sand he withdrew a creaky wooden chest.

Jack brought the head of his shovel crashing down on the chain that held the lock to the chest. With a clang, the weak chain broke and fell to the sand. He knelt in front of the chest, gazing at the chest with a sort of reverence as he creaked open the lid of the chest. Norrington and Elizabeth knelt beside him, looking awestruck. Sora and I got to our feet and walked over to peer into the chest. It contained countless duty letters written on crackly aged parchment.

I raised an eyebrow. Had we come all this way for a bunch of musty love letters? I watched as Jack brushed aside the yellowed pages to reveal a second, more intricately carved chest. It was small, and made of smooth, dark wood that looked recently polished, despite its time beneath the island's soil. It was sealed with a heart shaped lock. "What's in the chest?" Sora asked, watching the trio press their ears to the smaller chest.

Instead of replying, Elizabeth simply murmured, "It's real."

"You actually were telling the truth!" Norrington exclaimed quietly, a grin slowly spreading across his face.

"I do that quite a lot. You people are always surprised," Jack replied turning to face Norrington. Sora and I stifled our laughter; it was, after all, difficult to trust a pirate.

"With good reason," a new voice said. The source was a young man was striding towards us, a key hanging from a cord twined around his right hand. "Will!" Elizabeth breathed. Everyone stood up, as Elizabeth ran to her love and the two kissed.

"You're alright, thank God! I came to find you!" she explained, burying her face in his shoulder.

"How did you get here?" Jack asked.

"Sea turtles mate," Will said with a grin, "a pair of them strapped to my feet!"

"Not so easy, is it?" Jack asked with a small smile.

Will ignored the comment and continued, "But I do owe you thanks, Jack."

"You do?" the captain replied, looking puzzled.

The younger man went on, still holding on to his beloved, "After you tricked me onto that ship to square your debt with Jones..."

"What?" Elizabeth cried.

"What?" Jack asked, feigning innocence.

"I was reunited with my father" Will finished.

"Oh. Well, you're welcome then," Jack said smiling, and clapped his hands together in finality.

But Elizabeth refused to let go of the revelation of Jack's betrayal. She stormed over to the pirate, her eyes alight with fury. "Everything you said to me, every word was a lie?" she shouted.

"Pretty much," the captain shrugged, nonplussed, "time and tide, love." He then fixed his eyes on Will, who had unwound the key from his wrist key, and was kneeling beside the small chest with a crude dagger in his opposite hand. "Oi, what're you doing?" Jack asked worriedly, addressing Will.

"I'm going to kill Jones," Will answered simply. The air hissed as Jack drew his cutlass and pointed it to Will's neck.

"Can't let you do that, William. See if Jones's dead, who's to call his terrible beastie off the hunt, eh?" Sora stared at Jack in disbelief. It seemed like Jack's betrayal had struck him hard. But what bothered me the most was this 'beastie' Jack had mentioned. Was it the same 'mythological creature that Ragetti and Pintel had spoke of on our way to the island?

"Now if you please, the key," Jack requested, reaching out his hand for it.

Instead of handing over the key, Will drew the sword from the sheath at Elizabeth's waist. "I keep the promises I make, Jack. I intend to free my father. I hope you're here to see it."

Norrington removed his weapon from its sheath and pointed it at Will. "I can't let you do that either. So sorry" he muttered with false sympathy. I looked at Sora, confused as to what we should do in a situation such as this. As a precaution, we summoned our keyblades.

"I knew you'd warm up to me!" Jack exclaimed, taking a step towards Norrington, his sword lowered. Norrington's sword was immediately turned on the pirate, who in turn had Will's sword pointed at him. After a moment of hesitation, Jack pointed his sword at Will.

"Lord Beckett desires the contents of that chest. I deliver it, I get my life back," Norrington explained, keeping his sword trained on Jack.

"Ah, the dark side of ambition," Jack commented.

"Oh I prefer to see it as the promise of redemption," Norrington countered, and with a dark smile he swung his sword not at Jack, but at Will. Taking advantage of the moment, Jack lashed out at Will as well. Their target parried their blows with an expert's skill, forcing the two to clash with each other.

"Stop it!" Elizabeth cried desperately, but no one heeded her words.

Will dashed off, and blocked a strike from Norrington, which left him vulnerable to Jack, who swiped the key from Will's hands. Jack ran towards the forested area in the centre of the island, as Norrington swung at Will once more. Will ducked, only to have Norrington's foot kick him to the ground. Elizabeth hurried to his side, concern written across her face. "Guard the chest," Will ordered, leaving Elizabeth kneeling in the sand. Defiantly she got to her feet and stalked after them, leaving the chest unprotected.

"No! This is barbaric! This is no way for grown men to settle...oh, fine! Let's just haul out our swords and start banging away at each other! That will solve everything! I've had it! I've had it with wobbly-legged, rum-soaked pirates!" the young woman yelled furiously. The three men clashed swords, and continued to run across the beach, ignoring Elizabeth completely. She looked around on the ground until she found a rock, which she proceeded to throw at the dueling trio while shouting her protests.

~-x-~

Sorry that this world is taking so long, but it's probably going to be another chapter. Thanks to all of the readers and their continued support, and a special shout-out to TehAverageWrites who inspired me to stop procrastinating and write another chapter =D


	22. Chapter 21: A Good Captain

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts; all character credit (except for the OCs) goes to Disney and Square-Enix.

Chapter 21: A Good Captain Goes Down With His Ship

POV: Kumori

I stood in the knee-deep water with Riku and the mismatched pair that was Pintel and Ragetti, watching the receding figures of my friends and the pirates I had only recently met.

With a sigh, I dropped to the warm sand and lay, looking up at the cloudless azure sky. The sound of the waves, the gulls soaring in the sky, the warmth of the sun warming the soft sand...it seemed perfect. And it was until Pintel began grumbling to his easily-amused companion.

"Guard the boat, mind the tide, don't mind if I shine your shoes, sir?" Pintel fumed. It was funny how he hadn't voiced this opinion in front of the captain.

"I could join the circus!" Ragetti exclaimed on a completely unrelated note, balancing a shovel in one hand. I shut my eyes, trying to find the serenity that I had experienced only moments before.

The sand shifted as someone sat beside me. I opened my eyes to see Riku lying next to me, staring up at the sky with a small smile on his lips. He must have noticed that I was looking at him because he turned his aqua eyes to me. I looked away, my cheeks feeling unnaturally warm. "What?" he asked curiously.

"Nothing, you just seemed really content. I was just wondering why," I explained. It wasn't a complete lie.

He returned his gaze to the sky. "It's just so warm, so bright; I was just happy to savour the moment. I almost lost the light completely once," he recalled with a shudder. "It was horrible...and wonderful at the same time. But the power of darkness, it isolated me. I was left alone with the power...and the pain," he murmured, his turquoise eyes clouded.

"What happened? How did you survive it?" I inquired.

"Sora made me see that I was hurting the people that were important to me. With the King's help I eventually escaped the darkness, only to realize that I needed to use its power to help my friends," he continued with a tinge of bitterness in his voice.

"So you still have the power of darkness?" I asked. He nodded, with a troubled expression on his face. "But that's alright," I said in the hopes of making him feel better, "there's darkness and light in everyone. You can't help that."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Riku conceded, standing up.

I followed his example and looked over at Pintel and Ragetti. They were staring in horror at something behind Riku and I. Off of the coast of the island, a skeletal ship dove beneath the waves. Ragetti dropped the shovel, and with an unintelligible cry the duo went scurrying off in the direction the others had gone. That could only mean one thing: whatever was coming couldn't be good.

"Let's go," Riku said, dashing off after the pair. Not willing to be left behind, I sprinted down the beach after him.

POV: Riku

Kumori was the first person that I had opened up to about my time in the darkness, and she hadn't judged me for it. 'But I can't say that I would have blamed her if she had,' I thought to myself. Why was I thinking about this now? I needed to concentrate on what was happening now.

Ragetti and Pintel stopped in front of me, as they watched the woman that Jack had introduced as Elizabeth rant and throw rocks at a sword-fighting trio of pirates. I ignored them all, and focused on Sora and Kairi who were crouched in front of a two chests. One was large and filled with letters, while the other was still sealed shut.

In a moment I had reached them and after another moment we were joined by Kumori. "What's in the chest?" I asked Sora and Kairi.

"I'm not sure," Sora replied, scratching his head, "but whatever it is, everyone seems to want it."

"Well let's find out then," Kairi suggested, pointing at the lock with her keyblade. The heart-shaped lock disappeared in a burst of light. She then lifted the lid off the chest and peered inside. Her bright blue eyes widened and she pushed the chest away. From my vantage point, I could see the contents of the chest. Inside was a beating human heart.

"Why would anyone want that?" Sora asked. "And how is it still beating?" We all shook our heads confused and more than a little disturbed by this revelation. Everyone was after this? If everyone was after the chest, what would happen if we took the heart from the chest? The answer was clear in my mind: everyone would continue to chase after the empty chest, letting us escape with the heart. If we could make it to the ship, we could figure out what to do from there.

As much as it sickened me, I picked up the shuddering heart. Suppressing my disgust, I handed the heart to Sora. He raised an eyebrow. "Hide it in your pocket," I told him, and reluctantly he took it from my hand and slipped it into his pocket. I closed the chest and tucked it under my arm.

"Oi! You over there!" Pintel shouted at us, clearly upset that we were in possession of the chest. This caught the attention of the three quarrelling pirates and Elizabeth. The four and Pintel and Ragetti began running towards us.

"Back to the ship!" Sora shouted, as we all dashed towards the rowboats. Upon reaching the boats we were greeted by numerous deformed pirates. They had faces merged with those of sea creatures, and bodies ravaged by coral, barnacles and anemones. Their weapons ranged from cutlasses and axes to chain-shot and brass knuckles. And it seemed that each of these misshapen creatures wanted the chest too.

I held the chest under one arm. "Sora, Kairi, Kumori, go! I'll stay behind!" My friends hesitated, unsure of whether they should leave me. The mutated pirates shambled towards us. "Go! I'll catch up!" I said, turning away from them and dashing towards the jungle-like forest. I heard the pounding footsteps of the pirates pursuing me. Good, I could draw them away while the others escaped.

"Riku!" I heard a voice call from behind me. I dared to glance backwards, and saw Kumori running right behind me. Not far behind her were a dozen or so of the ocean-altered creatures, as well as Norrington and Will. And even further back, I saw Sora, Kairi, Elizabeth and Jack boarding one of three rowboats.

"What are you doing?" I called over my shoulder, a bit upset. She should have gone with Sora and Kairi to the safety of the ship, but instead she was here, putting herself in danger for no reason.

"I'll help you fight them off. I don't think they're going to give up the chest that easily," she replied, looking at me with a determined look in her eyes.

I turned my gaze back to where I was going. We were within the shelter of the trees now, and not far ahead was a field and the ruins of a church. On closer inspection, I realized that what I had thought was a field dotted with stones, was actually a graveyard full of crumbling monuments.

I came to a halt in the middle of the cemetery and summoned my keyblade with my free hand. Kumori stopped beside me, and called forth her keyblade just as the pirates reached us.

One pirate swung his sword towards me. I slipped to the side and it crashed into a stone cross, shattering it into rubble. Quickly, I knocked him aside into another pirate, and the pair fell into an open grave. Another pirate charged at me, and his cutlass crashed against my keyblade. From another side of me, a different pirate lashed out at me, this time with a length of chain-shot. I barely had time to dodge it as yet another pirate came up behind me. I was surrounded.

Glancing at Kumori, I saw that she was barely holding her own against three axe wielding pirates, while Norrington and Will, despite their uneasy truce were having difficulty with five others. Taking advantage of my distraction, a conch-headed pirate darted towards me, and with a twitch of his cutlass, disarmed me. A pirate with the head of a hammerhead shark tore the chest from my grip, and with a cruel, toothy smile, raised his axe into the air.

The clatter of clashing weapons stopped, as all of the mutated pirates stopped fighting and listened intently to a sound that they alone could hear. "Back to the ship!" cried out a man with his face melded with that of a blowfish. I watched in disbelief as they thundered through the forest, across the beach and back into the waters from whence they came.

They took the chest with them along with the key, which they had managed to pilfer from Will, and it would only be a matter of time before they realized that the chest was empty. I could only hope that we had bought Sora, Kairi and Jack enough time.

POV: Sora

Onboard the ship, things were not going well. When we had arrived, Jack had immediately demanded that I give him the heart, as he had deduced that we would have stayed and fought with the others if we hadn't already obtained it. That, added to the fact that he knew we wielded weapons that had the ability to open any lock.

The Black Pearl was also being bombarded by the cannons of a nearby ship. It was an immense, skeletal ship tinged a greenish-black by the sea. Kairi and I were ordered below decks, to help the retaliation efforts with the Pearl's cannons. The two of us helped load cannons, and I lit the fuse of many of them with fire spells. All the while, holes were shot through the sides of the ship by the cannons of the enemy, and it was obvious that we were fighting a losing battle.

A sudden shudder wracked the Pearl. Tentacles burst through the sides of the ship, dragging dozens of pirates from the ship. Exchanging glances, Kairi and I bolted above deck, determined to get some answers from Jack and avoid the multi-legged menace.

I spotted Jack, standing at the helm with his sword slashing at a tentacle that had crept over the edge of the ship. With her back to Jack, Elizabeth duelled with another limb of the creature. At the other side of the ship, I saw Riku, Kumori, Norrington and Will emerge from rowboats just as a tentacle curled over the two boats and crushed them.

Riku led a wide-eyed Kumori over to us, while Norrington and Will joined Jack. "What's going on?" Riku asked, glancing around the chaos that had consumed the ship.

"We're about to find out," I said, walking up to Jack, dodging the tentacles that lashed at us from both sides of the ship. "I tapped the captain's back, interrupting a conversation he had been having with Will.

He looked irritated, but the expression was soon replaced by one of utmost seriousness. "Davey Jones has set the Kraken on us," he muttered, his eyebrows furrowing. "But I have the heart...Jones!" Jack shouted to the ship that was hurling cannon balls at the Pearl, as if the other captain could hear him.

To my surprise, a man appeared before us. But perhaps man was too generous a term for this creature. His skin was a pale green hue, and the head beneath his dark tri-corn hat resembled an octopus, complete with tentacles dangling from his chin. His arm resembled a crab's claw, while his opposite hand had a curling tentacle instead of an index finger. He appeared to have a peg-leg, but closer inspection revealed it to be, not wood, but another crab-like limb. The creature wore a long overcoat that must have been majestic before it became worn with age and seawater, and encrusted with barnacles.

The arrival of the pirate called Jones resulted in the kraken concentrating its attacks on the other half of the ship. Jack cleared his throat nervously. "Er...I have the contents of the chest, so perhaps you should call off your terrible beastie, and we can negotiate," Jack suggested.

"The heart, where is it? Hand it over!" the creature referred to as Davy Jones demanded, looking around wildly.

In one fluid movement, Jack had swept his jar of dirt from the deck beside him. "Right here, mate," Jack replied, holding it in the crook of his arm. "Now, about those negotiations—"

"Argh!" Jones snarled, lunging at Jack with his sword. A surprised Jack darted backwards, drawing his sword with his free hand. Will, Elizabeth, Kairi, Kumori, Riku and I, all drew our weapons as well. Strangely, Norrington was nowhere to be seen. Though Jack was an unpredictable and sometimes ruthless pirate, he was still my friend. And I would fight with him to the end.

As one, we all rushed forward to surround Jones. The next few moments were a blur of glinting silver filled with the clashing of metal against metal. With an inhuman swiftness, Jones dodged and parried our blows. Angrily, he lashed out at Jack, narrowly missing his head, and instead striking the jar he was holding.

The glass shattered, and sand poured across the deck. Jones stared incredulously at the shards of glass and dirt scattered across the floorboards. Jack fell to his knees, his hands sifting through the pile of soil. "Where's the thump-thump?" he cried in alarm.

"Sparrow!" Jones growled. "You will rue the day you dared to mock Davy Jones!" he exclaimed, disappearing from the ship. With a roar, the kraken renewed its attack on the Black Pearl, doubling its efforts. All around us, wood splintered and broke and black sails were torn apart. Above the cracking and crashing of the kraken's destruction, I heard a splash.

"What was that?" Kairi asked, letting her keyblade drop to her side. The seven of us hurried over to the side of the ship and peered down into the water. There were three life boats in the water, one was a fair distance from the ship, and the other two floated just beside the ship. The boats that were closest held our fellow crewmembers. Gibbs was in the midst of lowering another boat. He looked up at us and called, "Quickly, climb aboard. We need to get off of the ship!"

Without hesitating everyone boarded the ship but Jack, Elizabeth and I. "Aren't you coming?" I asked the two of them when they didn't climb aboard.

"I need to talk to Jack, it'll only take a moment," Elizabeth informed me, walking a short distance away, dodging tentacles and flying fragments of the battered ship.

Jack paused. "Here, Sora," Jack said, using my actual name for the first time, "take this." He placed his prized compass into my hand before following after Elizabeth.

"Hurry up!" Gibbs called. Quickly, I slipped onboard the ship. Minutes ticked by sluggishly. Finally, Elizabeth returned. Alone.

"Where's Jack?" Will asked, making room for Elizabeth beside him.

"He elected to stay behind and give us a chance," she muttered. All eyes travelled back up the side of the ship, to where Jack was no doubt waiting for the kraken to strike its final blow and sink the ship, along with him.

"But Jack...no...Gibbs, we have to get him, force him aboard if we have to!" I shouted desperately.

"No can do, mate. The kraken's only after Jack," Gibbs said sombrely, shaking his head sadly.

"We won't forget his noble sacrifice," Ragetti mumbled, as crew members began to row.

"Where's Norrington?" someone asked. I didn't care enough to check who the speaker was. I was numbed by the shock of Jack's decision.

"We reckon he stole the heart before taking the first rowboat off of the ship," Gibbs replied grimly.

Seconds passed in silence, and I turned backwards to look at the Pearl one last time. The kraken's tentacles were wrapped around all sides of the ship, and as I watched, they tightened and crushed the Black Pearl completely. The poor ship collapsed, taking with it one of my good friends.

Silent tears stung my eyes, and Kairi placed a comforting hand on my shoulder. Jack was gone.

~-x-~

Author's Note

Wow this was a looonnnnggggg chapter O_O . . . and that's why it took so long to write. Oh and the combination of laziness and busy-ness...heheh

Anyways, sorry for the long wait, and thanks to all who have made it this far! This story has over 1000 hits! Thank you all so very much! :D

Also, thank you to .X, Amadeus Inkblood, NinjaSheik and TehAverageWrites.

So whatcha think of the story so far? I felt kinda mushy writing the first bit of the chapter, then all adrenaline pumped during the battle scenes, and unbelievably sad writing the last part of this chapter, knowing that I had to kill off a character So the mood kinda changes randomly too.

Sorry if it feels kinda rushed at parts; writer's block has been plaguing my mind -_-

Now, finally, we have reached the end of the Port Royal segment. I've been neglecting the villains, so expect them to make an appearance in the next chapter or two!

Anyways, thanks again for reading! ~Syke aka Chaotic Creativity

Chaotic Creativity: I'm sorry Jack!

Jack Sparrow: It's too late for that, love. I've found a better author, savvy? One that won't kill me!

Chaotic Creativity: Wait! Don't go! I can bring you back to life! :D

Jack Sparrow: Without ruining the story? *arches eyebrow*

Chaotic Creativity: Um... *nervous laugh*

Jack Sparrow: *shakes head and walks away*

Chaotic Creativity: *wails and cries in corner*

Archaeologist


	23. Chapter 22: Arabian Night Part One

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts; all character credit (except for the OCs) goes to Disney and Square-Enix.

Chapter 22: Arabian Night (Part One)

POV: Kairi

The silence was heavy with loss, broken only by the sound of the oars slapping the water. The wreckage of the Pearl was far behind us now, not even recognizable against the blue of the endless waters. Looking to the crew, I saw only sorrow and sombre faces.

Instead, I focused on the grief-stricken boy sitting beside me. His eyes were downcast, staring unseeingly at the worn black compass he held clasped in his hands. I opened my mouth to say something, to offer him some solace with my words, but nothing came. Finding no words to comfort him, I simply placed a hand lightly on his back, trying to convey to him my unspoken feelings of support. Sora tensed momentarily before relaxing beneath my touch, briefly turning his mournful eyes to me. There was such a tangible anguish in his eyes; it hit me like a blow to the chest. It hurt me to see him so distressed, so unhappy and unlike himself. And in a moment, his gaze had dropped back to Jack's compass, leaving my concern to fester.

-~x~-

We were lucky, and soon a ship appeared on the horizon. The captain was sympathetic to our situation and was happy to offer us transport back to Tortuga. After a few short hours, we were back on dry land. Once we had thanked our rescuers, we parted ways. Many of the Pearl's crewmembers—those who had survived that is—had immediately gone seeking new employment, eager to forget about what had happened off the coast of Isla Cruces. Only Gibbs and a handful of a select few crewmen remained to bid us farewell.

"You four take care o' yerselves, ya hear?" Gibbs said gruffly.

We nodded, and Riku, who had taken more of a leadership role because of Sora's grief, began to lead us back to the gummi ship. However, after a moment, Sora turned to Gibbs and spoke for the first time since immediately after Jack's death. Riku, Kumori and I paused, curious to hear what he had to say. "What about this?" Sora asked softly, holding out Jack's battered compass for Gibbs to see.

The man shrugged. "He gave it to you, mate, I reckon he wanted you to keep it," he said, turning his back to us and entering the tavern that we had visited when we first arrived in this world.

"Hm..." Sora murmured, gazing down at the compass. Suddenly the compass began to glow with an unearthly silver light, and it floated a few feet in the air.

"The keyhole," Riku muttered. Taking this as our cue, each of us summoned our respective keyblades and pointed them at the newly-revealed keyhole of this world. After the customary streams of light burst forth from our keyblades, we boarded the gummi ship.

"Which world are we visiting next?" I asked Sora after a short interlude of quiet peace.

"Hm? Oh, Agrabah is up ahead," he said in a subdued voice, nodding towards the world that was growing closer and closer. As we approached, a maze-like city located in the middle of a sandy desert came into view.

In a few minutes, we had landed in a lush grove of palm trees and verdant vegetation situated on the edge of a vast desert. Alongside the greenery was a massive sand-coloured wall that stretched out in either direction, which was dotted with what appeared to be defensive towers, and in the centre of which was an immense wooden gate.

Kumori and I stepped off of the gummi ship first, and I turned to see if Riku and Sora were following. Inside the gummi ship, I saw Riku with his hand on Sora's shoulder, saying something in a quiet voice that made me strain to make out the words.

"...going to be alright?" Riku asked softly, looking at the younger boy with concern.

"Yeah," Sora said, putting on a brave face, "It's hard, but I'll be fine, I promise."

Riku nodded, letting his hand slip from Sora's shoulder. "As long as you're sure," I heard him say as I turned back to face Kumori. She had wandered up to the wooden gate that led into the enormous city we had viewed from the air. I heard Sora and Riku fall into step behind me as I made my way over to her.

Standing in front of the gate, the sheer size of the gate was revealed. "How do you think we can get in? I don't see any locks," Kumori muttered, running a hand over the wood that had been worn smooth by the battering of the desert sands.

"Who goes there!" a gruff voice called from overhead. Tilting my head to look skyward, I spotted a well-muscled thug leering down at us from a tower located alongside the city entrance. From what I could see in the light of the steadily setting sun, he was wearing a black vest, a turban accented with a single polished ruby, and golden bands around his large forearms. He had a scruffy black beard, a cold look in his eye, and more than a few missing teeth. "Well?" he prodded impatiently.

"I'm Sora, and this is Kairi, Riku and Kumori. We're looking for entrance into Agrabah, to see our friend, Aladdin. Will you let us in?" Sora inquired politely.

"You know Aladdin, hm?" the guard repeated thoughtfully, scratching at his thin beard.

"Very well," he conceded after a short pause. "I assume you'd want to see him right away?" the guard asked, waiting expectantly.

"Yeah," Sora responded immediately.

"Open the gates!" the guard thundered, ducking out of view. The wooden gates swung open, revealing two guards dressed in the same uniform as the man we had been speaking to from the tower, and of course the man himself.

"This way, friends of the sultan's son-in-law," the guard intoned, leading us through the doors.

"What do you mean 'son-in-law'?" Sora asked, puzzled.

"Hah! Where've you been, kid? Aladdin is marrying his daughter! Their marriage is tomorrow," the burly guard explained gruffly. Despite the joyous nature of his announcement, his tone hadn't seemed very cheery.

"Oh," Sora remarked simply before falling into step behind him.

The man led us through crowded streets that were bustling with activity. Merchants shouted praise of their wares, trying to catch the attention of any and all people who walked the streets. The stalls they tended lined both sides of the city streets, and sold anything you could possibly want and more. From the stalls and the items, to the merchants and even the camels were all adorned in vibrant colours meant to attract customers. The street was awash with so much colour and variety; so different in comparison to my childhood home on the Destiny Islands.

Before I knew it, the muscular guard had guided us to the entrance to the Sultan's palace. At the intimidating doors, two guards dressed in the same uniform as our escort were posted. But the muscular guard merely nodded to the as he passed and led us inside. We found ourselves within an immense room whose floors were sleek, polished red marble. From the size of the room to the numerous golden ornaments and decorations that lined the hallways leading from this room, all around us we could see signs of the Sultan's sheer wealth.

There wasn't much time to appreciate the beauty, because our escort ushered us along to a room at the end of the hallway directly in front of us. The room was well-furnished, like the others, and apart from its solid gold decorations, also housed two azure-cushioned benches, one along each side of the room. Our burly escort instructed us to wait in this room while he requested an audience with the Sultan, and disappeared beyond the purple velvet curtain.

Kumori and Riku sat down on one bench, and Sora sat down at the edge of the empty bench, remaining uncharacteristically silent. I sat close to him and put an arm around his shoulder. He sighed quietly and leaned his head against me. The loss of Jack was a fresh wound in his heart, and even though he told Riku he would be strong, it would still take time to heal.

POV: Sora

After relaxing for a few moments in the waiting room, our escort returned for us. "The Sultan will see you now," he informed us in his rough voice, holding open a curtain to allow us entry into the throne room. It was an enormous circular room with a pale blue marble floor streaked with yellow and intricately decorated walls, including a blue and gold tile mosaic on either side of the throne and towering alabaster pillars. Down the middle of the room was a red carpet which led from the room we were standing in directly to the throne itself, which was a large golden seat with plush sapphire-coloured cushions.

A small, stout figure was perched atop the pillows. He had a fluffy white beard and moustache and bushy eyebrows over small laugh-lined eyes. His kindly face was almost hidden by a green-blue feathery plume that drooped down from his off-white turban. His clothing was the same off-white as his turban, trimmed in gold interrupted by a golden and aqua striped strip across his chest, just above his round belly. At the end of his pudgy legs were golden shoes that curled upwards at the toe.

At the prodding of our escort, the four of us walked across the infinitely long crimson carpet that led up to the Sultan. Once we reached the throne, we all bowed respectfully, and then straightened up as the Sultan addressed us. "Now, now there's no need for that, Sora my boy!"

"You know my name, sir?" I asked politely, surprised at the extent of his knowledge.

"Of course I do!" he chuckled good-naturedly. "Aladdin has told me so much about you. I understand that you helped him and my daughter out of trouble quite a few times, as well as saving all of Agrabah from Jafar's tyranny! For that, I am eternally grateful," the Sultan said, beaming at me.

"Anything for my friends," I replied truthfully, finding myself smiling at this man's warm demeanour.

"So, to business then!" the Sultan exclaimed, clapping his hands together. "You're here for the wedding, I presume?"

I exchanged glances with my friends. It seemed that way. "Yes," I replied.

"Ah, excellent, excellent," he smiled, repeating the last word in the sentence for emphasis. "Would you like to stay as guests at the palace tonight, and join us for dinner? You, and of course your friends, may attend the wedding tomorrow as honoured guests, in consideration of your great deeds," the Sultan offered graciously.

I looked at my three friends. "Well, we'd be honoured, thank you, sir," I replied, bowing quickly to show my respect. He nodded with a smile, happy that I had accepted his offer.

"Dinner will begin shortly, but for now, Razoul will show you to your rooms," the Sultan informed us, gesturing to the burly guard who had remained at the entrance to the throne room.

"But—your highness!" our muscular escort, who had now been identified as Razoul, protested, clearly opposed to the idea of having to lead us around yet again.

"Razoul," the Sultan warned sternly, reminding us all that, though he was a kind-hearted man, he was still in charge.

Offering no more objections, Razoul bowed and turned to lead us out of the throne room. My friends followed him, but I paused for a moment. "Thank you for your hospitality," I said respectfully, politely bowing again.

"It's only proper, all things considered, my dear boy. Now go along with your friends, and I will see you at dinner," the stout ruler of Agrabah replied.

As he suggested, I followed behind my friends as Razoul led us out of the throne room and the waiting room and into the vast hallways of the Sultan's palace. He led us through them with ease until we reached two sets of doors opposite each other at the end of one of the countless halls.

"These will be your quarters for the duration of your stay," Razoul explained curtly, and turned to leave. As he walked away, I could hear him grumbling under his breath, but the only words I could make out were "captain", "royal guard" and "street rat's friends."

Choosing to ignore his rapidly-fading complaints, I turned my attention to the rooms we had been given. Riku and I claimed the one on the left, overlooking the city, while the two girls had chosen the room on the right side of the hall which had a view of the palace grounds.

We had hardly any time to explore however, because a short while later a guard dressed in the same uniform as Razoul came to inform us that dinner was served. The gangly guard led us to one of the Sultan's personal rooms, chattering on about the wedding and all of the important dignitaries that would attend. Truth be told, I was too famished to focus on his words.

The room we arrived at was considerably smaller than the throne room, but still a magnificent sight to behold. White pillars encircled one half of the room, which included a balcony that looked out into the cloudless, starry night. It was furnished with generous amounts of gold decorations, like the other rooms in the palace, but unlike the others, this room had a small solid gold table in the centre of the room. The table itself was laden with all sorts of fresh foods: freshly baked breads, perfectly ripe fruits and vegetables, smoked meats and other foods that I didn't even have names for, all served on solid gold dishes.

Arranged around the table were countless plush cushions, and occupying three of them were faces I knew quite well. "Aladdin! Jasmine!" I exclaimed, feeling truly happy for the first time since Jack's death. "Congratulations," I added quickly, so as not to be rude.

"Thanks, Sora," Aladdin said with an appreciative smile. "But where are Donald and Goofy? I thought that they always travelled with you."

His question sobered my mood momentarily. "I'm not sure, they had things that needed taking care of in their homeland," I replied, trying to word it so that Aladdin wouldn't suspect that other worlds existed. I sincerely hoped that Donald and Goofy, and of course King Mickey, were safe, wherever they were.

"Oh," was all Aladdin said, as he tried to process this information. I could understand his bewilderment to an extent—he had never seen me without Donald and Goofy's company.

"I see that you've brought new friends to Agrabah this time," Jasmine observed, smiling warmly at her fiancés visitors.

"Yes, this is Kairi, Riku and Kumori," I told her, pointing to each of my friends in turn.

"Did you find that friend you were looking for?" Aladdin asked, returning to the conversation.

I looked over at Riku and smiled. "Yeah."

"I'm glad," Aladdin replied. "Now...let's eat!"

-~x~-

Author's Note: Since this chapter turned out to be so long, I've split it into two parts. Hopefully it's not quite as confusing as the last one! Sorry for the insanely long wait, hope you enjoyed


	24. Chapter 23: Arabian Night Part Two

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts; all character credit (except for the OCs) goes to Disney and Square-Enix.

Chapter 23: Arabian Night (Part Two)

POV: Kairi

Dinner was a lively mixture of chatter about life in Agrabah and all that had gone on since Sora had departed, which was of course was between bites of a delicious meal. The Sultan remained mostly quiet, only speaking up to fill in details that his daughter and son-in-law had overlooked or forgotten to mention. He understood that the Sora, Jasmine and Aladdin had wanted to catch up, and that the latter two also wanted to learn a bit about Riku, Kumori and I as well.

Soon, the meal was over and we bade each other goodnight, thanking the Sultan for the meal and his kindness. In the hallway outside of the two rooms, we said our goodnights. Sora and I shared a brief, blissful kiss before returning to our respective rooms. As soon as he broke the kiss, he held me tightly, and whispered into my ear, "Meet me on the balcony in my room in five minutes." Smiling to myself, I retired to my room.

Inside our room, Kumori sat perched on the edge of her bed, just as she had in Destiny Islands. She was biting her lip, as if she wanted to speak, but instead she remained quiet, staring at her feet. I copied her, sitting on the side of my own bed, and decided to break the silence.

"What is it?" I asked curiously, looking over at the other girl.

"Um...I was just wondering...what's it like to...be with Sora?" Kumori asked shyly, keeping her eyes fixated on her shoes.

"You mean, how does it feel to be in love?" I asked her in response.

She nodded. "I know it seems silly, but, there's a lot I don't remember about...love," she admitted.

I smiled, understanding. "It's alright," I assured her. "Let's see..." I murmured, trying to find the perfect words to convey the powerful emotion. "It's unlike any other feeling you'll ever experience. It's like you're a half of a whole," I mused. "And when you're apart, you feel an ache in your chest; a longing that you can't explain. That person makes you feel your most vulnerable and also your strongest. They bring out your best qualities, and for them, you want to become a better person. They are always there to support you through tough times, and refuse to give up on you, even when others have. You cherish that person above all others, and are willing to sacrifice anything for their happiness." I paused to catch my breath. "At least, that's how I see it, anyways," I laughed, trying to lighten the intensity of the conversation topic.

"Wow," Kumori said softly after a moment, lying on her back with her hands folded beneath her head. "It must be wonderful."

"It is," I replied simply with a smile. "But what caused this sudden interest in love?" I asked, studying her from my seat on my bed. She paused for a moment to think about her answer; I waited for a moment, and then decided to venture a guess, "Do you feel something for Riku?" She seemed to spend a lot of time with him, despite the short amount of time she had known us, and it seemed like a valid guess.

Her normally pale complexion turned a shade of red brighter than my hair, and she instantly sat up. "N-no of course not," she replied quickly, bowing her head so that her ebony hair fell into her eyes. "I was just wondering, that's all."

"Oh. He seems to have taken notice of you," I mentioned offhandedly, watching to gauge her reaction.

She looked up at me. "Really? Oh," she mumbled. Kumori was silent for a while, so I decided that it would be an opportune time to meet up with Sora.

"I've got to leave for a little while," I informed her, "I'm not quite sure when I'll be back, but have a good night!" She nodded, lost in thought, and I slipped out into the hallway.

I knocked quietly on the door to Sora and Riku's room, and a moment later it opened. Instead of Sora, I was greeted by Riku. "Hey, Kairi," he said. "Sora's out there," he directed me, pointing with a thumb to the open balcony at the back of the room.

"Thanks," I told him, seeing the spiky-haired brunette leaning against the terrace's low railing.

Sora's face brightened when he saw me, and as soon as I was within range he immediately wrapped me in a warm embrace. "I have something I want to show you," he told me excitedly, leading me by the hand over to the edge of the railing. "I want you to stand on the railing and then step off of it," he said seriously.

I stared at Sora incredulously, wondering why he would ask such a thing of me. He noticed my hesitation, because he immediately began reassuring me. "Don't worry, Kairi, you won't fall. You'll be fine, I promise." I still thought he was crazy, but I trusted him. He held out a hand and helped me climb onto the railing, squeezing my hand tightly before letting go. After several deep breaths, I stepped off of the balcony.

Right onto a floating carpet. I sat down, and saw that it was mainly indigo in colour, threaded through with red and gold designs, each corner ending in golden tassels. Despite its seemingly decorative purpose, the carpet held my weight with ease, and didn't even react as Sora stepped onto it beside me.

"What is this?" I asked, running my hands over the carpet in awe.

"It's a magic carpet," he replied matter-of-factly, kneeling down beside me. "Take us across the desert please," he said, addressing the carpet. Understanding his request completely, the carpet took to the skies and soared into the night.

Dusk had stained the desert sands with shadows, but the pale glow of the full moon cast pale blue light to counterbalance them. The night was starry and cloudless, a blue that was slightly darker than Sora' stunning azure eyes.

Turning my eyes from the night to look at him, I saw that he had already set his gaze on me. "Kairi, once this is all over, I promise that we'll have time to ourselves, away from the Heartless and all of the danger. Just the two of us and the Islands, okay?" he asked softly, draping an arm over my shoulder and pulling me close.

I relaxed against his chest and sighed. "Yeah, Sora. I'd like that."

POV: Kumori

Once, Kairi had left, I extinguished the candles, engulfing the room in darkness. I lied down on my bed, and shut my eyes, willing myself to fall asleep. Too many thoughts were crowding my head, and so I tossed and turned, until at long last I fell into a fitful sleep.

_I stood in a strange derelict hallway, with floors of cold stone tiles and ancient stone walls and pillars that were so worn that cracks and holes revealed the glowing blue-white circuitry within. My dream-self was clutching the cobalt-haired teen's hand. "You've been acting more and more distant lately, are you feeling okay?" I asked with concern._

_Slowly he turned to face me, and sighed. "Is it the experiments?" I asked fearfully. _

"_Shh!" he warned, raising a slender finger to his lips. "What if someone hears you? I wasn't even supposed to have told you." _

"_Sorry", I muttered guiltily._

"_Don't worry, it's fine, just be more careful next time," he replied, waving away my concern. "Listen, I have to leave—"_

_The scene of the dream abruptly changed, and now I was sitting against the door of the blue-wallpapered room from my previous dream. My dream-self was leaning heavily against the wooden door, her entire body wracked by sobs._

"_How could he have disappeared?" she cried out in anguish. The pain in her chest was too much to bear. The teen in question had been missing for weeks, and instead of dulling the pain, time had only intensified her loss._

_A noise caught my dream-self's attention, and she turned her attention to the other side of the room. As she watched, a black portal that rippled with blues and violets appeared. For a moment, she allowed herself to hope, but those hopes were immediately dashed when she saw who stepped out of it. _

"_He didn't 'disappear.' I think I know where he is," stated the boy with scarlet hair and burgundy-hued eyes. _

_This time, I suppressed any hopes that began to grow, knowing that if he was wrong the disappointment would only tear new wounds into my already raw heart. "What are you talking about, Valens?" my dream-self asked, her voice hoarse from weeping. _

"_I mean that I know I found someone who is the mirror-image of him while I was out exploring other worlds," he replied in an exasperated voice. _

_My dream-self raised an eyebrow. "Other worlds?" she asked skeptically. _

"_Look, you can either come with me to find my best friend, or keep yourself locked in this room. It's up to you," Valens said harshly._

_She flinched at his tone, but quickly recovered. "What do you mean, find? I thought you already knew where he was?" I inquired._

"_I only caught a glimpse of him, but he's somewhere inside that castle, I'm sure of it. We just need to pinpoint where," he explained._

_My dream shifted again, and this time I stood in a pure white hallway. My dream-self was in the arms of the cobalt-haired teen, who was wearing a black cloak as opposed to his usual white lab coat._

_Again, the dream changed, and I was standing in the neglected hallway again. Valens addressed me with a solemn face, "He's gone. I searched the castle, but there's no sign of him, or anyone else. It's completely deserted."_

_Once more, the images in my mind altered, and now I stood in a massive library, the walls hidden by towering shelves that were lined with countless books. My dream-self sat in a small wooden chair at an equally small table, situated beneath a curving staircase. She was poring over books. _

_Suddenly, the pages my dream-self had been reading were obscured as Valens dropped a few sheets of paper onto her book. "Read it," he ordered, taking the small wooden chair opposite her. _

_She complied, and began to read aloud. _

"_I have transcended to an existence of only the heart. I should have come back as a Heartless, but there is no sign of such a transformation._ _My body has surely perished. However, I am different from the other Heartless, keeping the memories of before, and I have not taken on the form of a Heartless._ _It is evident that there are still many things to be studied._ _In order to cross over to the dark realm, which is not this world, you must go beyond the door of Kingdom Hearts, the heart of all worlds._ _The core connected to the world's heart, the place that will take me to the world of darkness.__*******__ Some of my apprentices' have retained their human forms, despite the dark corruption that caused them to lose their hearts. I have decided to send them off to different parts of the universe, using these 'corridors of darkness' that are now accessible to us, in the hopes that one of them will discover this realm, where Kingdom Hearts, the heart of all worlds, manifests itself."_

"_What does it mean?" my dream-self asked softly, afraid to hope._

"_It means," Valens said quietly, "That somewhere, he might still be alive."_

_Abruptly, the maroon-eyed boy was standing beside her as she faced the enormous white door. It swung open soundlessly, and the three of them, Valens, the cobalt haired teen and my dream-self, stepped through the door into suffocating darkness populated by Heartless. In the distance, a bright light shone. _

With a start, I emerged from my dreams. I sat up, breathing heavily and trying to understand what I had just witnessed in the world of my dreams. Unlike the last few dreams I'd had, these were broken and unrelated, confusing my amnesia-plagued mind even further. Pushing aside my confusion for the moment, I took a deep breath. For some unfathomable reason, the sight of that vivid light in those impenetrable shadows had sent my heart racing.

I untangled myself from the bedding and stood up. I waited a moment for my eyes to adjust to the darkness, noticing that Kairi had returned and was fast asleep. Moving quietly, so as not to wake her, I made my way out of the room. I travelled the hallways, looking for a doorway leading outside. Vaguely, I noticed red marble floors that glistened with a polished sheen in the pale moonlight, and gilded art. Finally, after moving through the hallways for minutes on end, I managed to find a doorway veiled in dark curtains that led out into the palace gardens.

The garden was surrounded by four stone walls, and lined with a wide variety of verdant flora stained blue by the shadows. There were large bird cages that were elaborately decorated, but they seemed to be completely empty. In the centre of the garden was a stone courtyard, which included a grand stone fountain made to look like a giant white water lily. Floating in the fountain were countless real water lilies that were tinted gold in the moonlight. Atop the great water lily perched a peacock, which, instead of having tail feathers carved from white stone like the rest of it, had a plumage formed of sparkling cascades of water.

I sat down at the edge of this fountain enjoying the gentle ambience of the fountain. Relaxing for the first time since I had first gone to sleep, I allowed my mind to go blank, shutting my eyes and pushing aside my dreams and their confusion before they could overwhelm me. Moments could have passed, or maybe it was hours; time blurred together in that peace where I balanced at the edge of slumber.

"Mind if I join you?" a hushed voice spoke out, interrupting the fleeting yet endless serenity.

I cracked open an eye to see who had disturbed me. Shaggy, long silvery hair. Deep aqua eyes. Riku. "Not at all. But why are you up so late?" I asked curiously, moving myself into a sitting position.

"After Sora and Kairi left, I just wandered the hallways. I was roaming when I found the gardens, so I decided to enjoy some fresh air," he explained, taking a seat on the fountain ledge beside me.

"They left?" I asked. Where could they have possibly gone?

"Yeah, a romantic excursion or something," Riku replied with a slight smirk, but beneath it there was another emotion...sadness maybe? "But anyways, why are _you_ up at this time of night?" he added, changing the subject.

"I dreamed myself awake," I replied with a soft laugh. "And I couldn't manage to fall asleep afterwards."

"Good dreams?" he asked quietly.

"I'm not really sure," I answered truthfully, my thoughts returning to the confusing dreams once more. We sat there in silence, as I sifted through the dreams, trying to find a connection, anything to help me understand. I remembered the passage I had been reading, the one that mentioned the 'door of Kingdom Hearts.' Could it have been the massive white door I'd seen in my previous dream?

My voice shattered the silence, "Riku, what exactly is 'Kingdom Hearts'?"

He looked up, startled. "How do you know about it?" Riku inquired in a low voice, staring at me with his piercing turquoise eyes.

"I-I heard about it in one of my dreams," I told him, turning my eyes away from him. The intensity of his gaze had surprised me.

He paused for a moment, and then began to speak, "It is the heart of all worlds." 'The heart of all worlds.' Hadn't that been in my dream too? "It is the ultimate goal of the Heartless to obtain it."

"But what do the Heartless want with Kingdom Hearts?" I asked. The name suggested that they lacked hearts...was it possible they strived to complete themselves? But my theory was quickly dismissed with the next words Riku spoke.

"Most Heartless are simply born from the darkness residing in people's hearts. The people who become Heartless lose their physical appearance as well as their emotions, driven only by their desires. And what the Heartless desire more than anything else are hearts. If they overpower you, they will consume your heart, and the product will be another Heartless. The heart of a world is even more sought-after by Heartless than the hearts of people, and the only thing that a Heartless wants more than the heart of a world is the heart of _all_ worlds."

"What would happen if a Heartless devoured Kingdom Hearts?" I asked, almost fearful of the answer.

"Darkness," Riku replied softly. "I can't think of a worse fate than that." I remembered him mentioning the darkness and the power and isolation that it brought. "I was in the Realm of Darkness once, the place where Kingdom Hearts and the Heartless themselves reside. So many shades of blackness...but I was only there briefly before I blacked out. But those few seconds were horrible enough," he remarked with a shudder.

Darkness...so deep and impenetrable...A spike of pain shot through my skull. "Ah!" I cried out, clutching my head. I bit my lip, trying to hold in a scream; the agony was too much to bear. My vision darkened for a moment. Slowly, my vision returned in flashes, but I wasn't seeing the garden anymore. A white door. An endless abyss of pure darkness. A massive, golden heart-shaped moon. Three figures reaching out and then darkness once more.

The visions faded, and I opened my eyes dazedly. Aquamarine eyes looked down at me with concern. "Riku?" I muttered, trying to get my bearings. It was cold, freezing cold, and my head was pounding with an excruciating ferocity.

"Are you alright?" he asked, his normally calm eyes bright with alarm. "You just...passed out, and fell into the fountain," he told me. That explained the icy temperature.

Looking down I saw that I was completely soaked. I turned my eyes to Riku, and saw that he was kneeling beside me, and he was just as waterlogged as I was. Above out heads, the fountain water continuously drenched us. My eyes focused on Riku again, and I realized that he wanted a reply.

"I'm alright, thanks," I replied sheepishly, feeling guilty that he had followed me into the fountain, and embarrassed that I had blacked out and fallen in the first place. "Sorry," I apologized, letting my gaze drop to the ground.

"Hey, it's okay," he assured me, standing up. "Here," he said. I raised my head to look at him, and saw the hand he held out to me.

Kairi's words rang through my head: 'always there to support you...' I remembered how he had been there for me in Wonderland and the Pridelands...I pushed those thoughts out of my mind. I took his hand. He was so warm. I pushed that thought away, too, as soon as it entered my mind, but not before a couple of memories surfaced in my mind. Riku catching me before I plunged into the waters off of Neverland. Embracing him in Wonderland...I took a deep breath and shut my eyes briefly, willing my mind to clear of such superfluous thoughts.

Holding his hand, he helped pull me to my feet. Miscalculating, he tugged my hand a little too strongly, and I slipped against the slippery base of the fountain. I fell forward, but Riku caught me before I could collide with the ground, holding me to his chest.

"Whoa, you okay?" he asked softly, not at all fazed by our closeness. I nodded, my heart beating erratically in my chest. He let his arms fall to his sides, and I took a step back and nearly slipped again. "Careful," Riku warned, grasping my wrist before I could fall again.

"Thanks," I managed to mumble. "Sorry about that."

Riku moved his hand away from me and replied quietly, "Don't worry about it."

Taking caution, I stepped out of the fountain, sopping wet and cold, but there was a warm feeling in my chest that made the other sensations irrelevant. Riku followed me out of the fountain and stopped beside me. He turned his blue-green eyes to me, "You should probably get back inside the palace, before you catch a cold," he remarked.

I looked at him from the corner of my vision, only to see that his gaze was still fixed on me. My cheeks turned red, but I hoped that he couldn't see that in the moonlight. "You should too, then," I commented, taking in his sodden appearance.

A familiar smirk played across his lips. "C'mon, let's head inside." Riku led us through the palace halls, since I couldn't remember the path I had taken to arrive at the garden, until we reached the doors to our rooms.

"Well goodnight then," he said with a short wave.

"Goodnight," I replied quietly, as he shut the door behind himself. I felt a short pang that pulsed in my chest. 'An ache in your chest; a longing that you can't explain,' that was how Kairi had put it. But that was impossible; I didn't harbour feelings for Riku...did I?

I walked into the room I shared with Kairi and climbed under the covers of my bed, feeling warm and secure. My heartbeat hadn't slowed since my encounter with Riku in the fountain. I felt weak and out of breath. Once more, I could almost hear Kairi's voice in my head say 'that person makes you feel your most vulnerable.'

I sighed, lying back against the pillows. Did I have feelings for Riku? Was Kairi right after all? I closed my eyes and tried to ignore the small voice in the back of my head that said she was.

-~x~-

*******This is taken directly from Ansem Report 12, for anyone who was curious. The following two lines are of my own creation, to move the story along in the right direction.

Thanks to all the readers that have stayed with this story so long! Special thanks to ccsakura21, SuperTacocat, Maddiejane94, and TehAverageWrites. (Sorry forgot to add these in the last chapter!)

Hopefully this chapter wasn't _too_ cheesy, hope you enjoyed :)


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